Of all the interest groups the Obama White House met with during its Supreme Court nomination process, at least one of them was conservative.

Federalist Society Executive Vice President Leonard Leo told NationalJournal.com that a member of the group's senior management team, Dean Reuter, attended a White House briefing May 19. Representatives from the American Constitution Society, American Bar Association, Minority Corporate Counsel Association and Association of Corporate Counsel were also there, we've learned; the White House has not released a full list.

This is one of at least three meetings involving the White House in the weeks before President Obama introduced Sonia Sotomayor as his high court nominee. One of them brought together several heavyweight left-leaning groups, including the Alliance for Justice, People for the American Way and the AFL-CIO; in another, several minority bar associations, including those representing Hispanics, Asian-Americans and Native Americans, discussed the nomination with officials as part of an annual meeting.

Right-leaning groups have been scarce. As for left-leaners, the New York Times reported Thursday that the White House had a specific message for them: They were told "not to lobby for their favorites in the news media or talk down candidates they opposed. The message, as one surprised visitor heard it, was 'get on board or get out of the way.'"

The Federalist Society typically stays out of nomination battles and wouldn't be expected to share this administration's judicial views in any case, but it has a longstanding, influential role in conservative politics that might have been a factor for the White House. On Monday, for instance, the group is hosting a luncheon with Alabama Republican and Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Jeff Sessions.