Skip to main content

Gorsuch: The Judge Who Speaks for Himself

By

Some Supreme Court justices stand taller in our memories than others, due to both their influential (or incendiary) opinions, and the public role they take on as Supreme Court justice. Antonin Scalia, one of the most well-known Justices in modern memory, died suddenly on February 13, 2016, leaving a long and controversial legacy. The first Supreme Court vacancy overseen by the Trump administration led to the nomination, and later, confirmation of Neil McGill Gorsuch of Colorado, then 49 years old. Far from a household name, much remains unknown about Gorsuch and the justice he will become. In Gorsuch, a new biography by journalist John Greenya, readers learn more about our newest justice, if not his jurisprudence.

A relatively slim volume, at about 200 pages, Greenya’s book explores Gorsuch’s early years, career progression, and confirmation process. The reader learns about his formative experiences growing up in Colorado, and his experience as the son of a former EPA-head (Anne Gorsuch). The recollections of his classmates at Harvard Law School are interesting as well, with most describing him as a thoughtful conservative, graduating at the top of his class along with Barack Obama in 1991. Later chapters discuss his clerking experience with Justice Anthony Kennedy (though he was hired by a retiring Justice White), years in private practice, and his stint at the DOJ before appointment to the federal bench.

Gorsuch’s stance on abortion and the future of Roe v. Wade is discussed throughout the book, with friends and colleagues opining on how his appointment to the Supreme Court may affect abortion rights. The book finishes with a discussion of his major opinions as a federal judge, and a detailed account of his Senate Confirmation Hearings. All in all, Gorsuch provides a good overview for anyone interested in a not-so-well-known Supreme Court justice.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Amazing, but True, Deportation Story of Carlos Marcello

By
Earlier this week, the University of Houston Law Center was fortunate to have as its guest Professor Daniel Kanstroom of Boston College of Law. An expert in immigration law, he is the Director of the International Human Rights Program, and he both founded and directs the Boston College Immigration and Asylum Clinic. Speaking as the guest of the Houston Journal of International Law’s annual Fall Lecture Series, Professor Kanstroom discussed issues raised in his new book, Aftermath: Deportation Law and the New American Diaspora . Professor Michael Olivas introduced Professor Kanstroom to the audience, and mentioned the fascinating tale of Carlos Marcello, which Professor Kanstroom wrote about in his chapter “The Long, Complex, and Futile Deportation Saga of Carlos Marcello,” in Immigration Stories , a collection of narratives about leading immigration law cases. My interest piqued, I read and was amazed by Kanstroom’s description of one of the most interesting figures in American le...
1 comment
Read more

This Day in Legal History -- Roy Cohn

By
Big lawyers have big personalities, and few had as big a personality as Roy Cohn who was born on this day in New York City in 1927. Cohn’s career was spent in the Washington DC—New York axis, famous in the press for his legal and social exploits, his list of famous and infamous clients, and as the poster-boy for every stereotype of the dishonest grasping lawyer. The legal career of Roy Cohn is an object lesson on the use, and abuse, of the lawyer’s power. Roy Cohn was born on February 20, 1927 in New York City. His father was a justice in the Appellate Division of the State Supreme Court and was well connected politically. These connections, along with a precocious intelligence which allowed him to graduate from Columbia law school at age 20, paved the way for a bright legal career. Cohn’s first job (after waiting until he turned 21 to be admitted to the bar) was as an assistant U.S. Attorney in New York. He first came to prominence in his role as a prosecutor in the Rosenberg espi...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Bar Exam: Some History & Comparison

By Lauren Schroeder
It's that time of year again...time for two to three days of squeezing out all the material that hopeful lawyers have been pounding into their heads over several months - the bar exam. To mark the occasion, here is a brief history of the exam itself, as well as a taste of what is required to become an attorney elsewhere. Prior to the mid-1800s, there were no written bar exams. Instead, the path to becoming a lawyer led hopefuls through "apprenticeships, self-directed reading, and oral examinations." The next phase made use of a diploma privilege, which remained until the ABA began requiring exams in the 1920s. (A diploma privilege does still exist in Wisconsin, however.) The first state to employ a written version of the bar exam was Massachusetts, in 1855. (See Riebe, A Bar Review for Law Schools: Getting Students on Board to Pass Their Bar Exams , 45 Brandeis L. J. 269 (2007) for quoted material and historical information.) Bar exams consisted only of essays until...
Post a Comment
Read more