Ketanji Brown Jackson

Ketanji Brown Jackson
Fred Schilling / United States Supreme Court · Public domain · source
Name	Ketanji Brown Jackson
Caption	Official portrait, 2022
Office	Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
Nominator	Joe Biden
Termstart	June 30, 2022
Predecessor	Stephen Breyer
Office1	Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
Termstart1	June 17, 2021
Termend1	June 30, 2022
Nominator1	Joe Biden
Predecessor1	Merrick Garland
Successor1	Florence Y. Pan
Office2	Vice Chair of the United States Sentencing Commission
Termstart2	2010
Termend2	2014
President2	Barack Obama
Predecessor2	Michael E. Horowitz
Successor2	Charles R. Breyer
Birth name	Ketanji Onyika Brown
Birth date	14 September 1970
Birth place	Washington, D.C., U.S.
Spouse	Patrick G. Jackson
Education	Harvard University (AB, JD)

Ketanji Brown Jackson is an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. She was nominated by President Joe Biden and confirmed by the United States Senate in 2022, becoming the first African-American woman to serve on the nation's highest court. Prior to her elevation, she served as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and as a federal public defender, bringing a unique professional background to the federal judiciary.

Early life and education

Ketanji Onyika Brown was born in Washington, D.C. and grew up in Miami, Florida. Her parents, Johnny and Ellery Brown, were public school teachers who instilled a strong emphasis on education; her father later attended law school and became an attorney for the Miami-Dade County School Board. She attended Miami Palmetto Senior High School where she excelled in debate and student government. Jackson earned her Bachelor of Arts degree, *magna cum laude*, from Harvard University in 1992, where she majored in government. She then attended Harvard Law School, serving as an editor of the Harvard Law Review, and graduated with a Juris Doctor in 1996.

Legal career

After law school, Jackson completed three prestigious clerkships: first for Judge Patti B. Saris of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, then for Judge Bruce M. Selya of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, and finally for Justice Stephen Breyer of the Supreme Court of the United States during the October 1999 term. She worked in private practice at the law firm Miller & Chevalier and later at Morrison & Foerster. From 2005 to 2007, she served as an assistant federal public defender in the District of Columbia, representing indigent clients before the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. She also served as vice chair of the United States Sentencing Commission from 2010 to 2014, appointed by President Barack Obama, where she worked on reducing disparities in federal sentencing guidelines.

Judicial career

In 2012, President Obama nominated Jackson to serve as a district judge for the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. She was confirmed by the Senate in 2013, becoming only the second Black woman to serve on that court. During her tenure, she presided over notable cases involving congressional subpoenas during the Trump administration and challenges to executive agency actions. In 2021, President Biden nominated her to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, often considered the nation's second-most influential court. She was confirmed by a bipartisan vote and served for just under a year before her elevation to the Supreme Court of the United States.

Supreme Court nomination and confirmation

On February 25, 2022, following the retirement announcement of Justice Stephen Breyer, President Joe Biden nominated Jackson to the Supreme Court of the United States, fulfilling a campaign promise to appoint the first Black woman justice. Her confirmation hearings before the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary were historic and spanned several days, during which she discussed her judicial philosophy and extensive record. On April 7, 2022, the full United States Senate confirmed her nomination by a vote of 53–47, with three Republican senators—Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, and Mitt Romney—joining all Democrats in support. She was sworn into office on June 30, 2022, by Chief Justice John Roberts.

Jurisprudence and legal philosophy

Justice Jackson's early jurisprudence reflects a meticulous, text-based approach to statutory interpretation and a commitment to procedural fairness. Her background as a public defender informs her attention to criminal justice issues and the practical impact of legal rulings on individuals. On the Supreme Court of the United States, she has quickly become known for her incisive questioning during oral arguments and detailed, separate writings. In cases such as *Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard*, she has authored vigorous dissents defending the constitutionality of race-conscious admissions policies, grounding her arguments in the original understanding of the Fourteenth Amendment and the nation's history of inequality.

Personal life

Jackson is married to Patrick G. Jackson, a surgeon who graduated from Harvard College and the Stanford University School of Medicine. The couple has two daughters. Her family has deep ties to the legal profession; her brother served in the United States Army as a military police officer and later as an attorney, and her uncle was a police chief in Miami. She is a member of the American Law Institute and has served on the board of trustees for Georgetown Day School in Washington, D.C.. In her confirmation hearings, she credited her parents' experiences during the Civil Rights Movement as a foundational influence on her career and perspective.

Category:Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States Category:1970 births Category:Harvard University alumni Category:American women judges