Justice Neil M. Gorsuch

Justice Neil M. Gorsuch is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, appointed by President Donald Trump and confirmed by the United States Senate in 2017. He is a native of Colorado and graduated from Columbia University, Harvard Law School, and University of Oxford, where he studied under Professor John Finnis at Oxford University. Before joining the Supreme Court, he served as a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, nominated by President George W. Bush and confirmed by the United States Senate in 2006. His judicial philosophy is influenced by Originalism and Textualism, similar to Justice Antonin Scalia and Justice Clarence Thomas.

● Early Life and Education

Justice Neil M. Gorsuch was born in Denver, Colorado, to David Gorsuch, a United States Environmental Protection Agency administrator, and Anne Gorsuch Burford, a Colorado State Senator. He grew up in Boulder, Colorado, and attended Georgetown Preparatory School in North Bethesda, Maryland, where he was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa society. He then enrolled at Columbia University, graduating magna cum laude in 1988, and later attended Harvard Law School, where he earned his Juris Doctor degree in 1991. During his time at Harvard Law School, he was a Harvard Law Review editor and studied under Professor Laurence Tribe. He also received a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Jurisprudence from University of Oxford in 2000, where he was a Marshall Scholar.

● Career

Before becoming a judge, Justice Neil M. Gorsuch worked as a Law clerk for Judge David B. Sentelle of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and later for Justice Byron White and Justice Anthony Kennedy of the Supreme Court of the United States. He then entered private practice, working as a partner at the law firm Kelley Drye & Warren in Washington, D.C., and later at Holmes, Roberts & Owen in Denver, Colorado. In 2005, he became the Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General at the United States Department of Justice, working under Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty. His work at the Department of Justice involved NSA Surveillance and Guantanamo Bay issues, in collaboration with FBI Director Robert Mueller and CIA Director Porter Goss.

● Judicial Career

Justice Neil M. Gorsuch's judicial career began in 2006, when he was nominated by President George W. Bush to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He was confirmed by the United States Senate and served as a Judge on the Tenth Circuit for over a decade, hearing cases related to Administrative Law, Constitutional Law, and Statutory Interpretation. During his time on the Tenth Circuit, he developed a reputation as a Textualist and Originalist, often citing the work of Justice Antonin Scalia and Justice Clarence Thomas. He also taught Constitutional Law and Legal Ethics at the University of Colorado Law School and was a Visiting Professor at Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, British Columbia.

● Supreme Court Nomination and Confirmation

On January 31, 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Justice Neil M. Gorsuch to the Supreme Court of the United States, to fill the vacancy left by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia. The nomination was supported by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre, but faced opposition from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero. After a contentious confirmation process, Justice Neil M. Gorsuch was confirmed by the United States Senate on April 7, 2017, with a vote of 54-45, and was sworn in as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court on April 10, 2017, in a ceremony attended by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

● Supreme Court Tenure

Since joining the Supreme Court, Justice Neil M. Gorsuch has heard cases related to First Amendment rights, Second Amendment rights, and Immigration Law, often siding with Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Samuel Alito. He has also written opinions on Administrative Law and Statutory Interpretation, citing the work of Justice Antonin Scalia and Justice Hugo Black. In the 2019-2020 term, he wrote the majority opinion in Bostock v. Clayton County, which held that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects LGBTQ+ employees from employment discrimination, joined by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Justice Stephen Breyer. His opinions have been influenced by Originalism and Textualism, and have been praised by Federalist Society President Eugene Meyer and Cato Institute Chairman Robert Levy.

● Notable Opinions and Jurisprudence

Justice Neil M. Gorsuch has written notable opinions in cases such as Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC, Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, and Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. His opinions have been characterized as Textualist and Originalist, and have been praised by Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Samuel Alito. He has also been a strong advocate for Judicial Restraint and Separation of Powers, citing the work of Justice Antonin Scalia and Justice William Rehnquist. His jurisprudence has been influenced by Aristotle, John Locke, and James Madison, and has been studied by scholars at Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, and University of Chicago Law School.