Famous American Judges

The first Jewish woman to serve on the US Supreme Court, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. An advocate for gender equality and women's rights, she spent the majority of her legal career championing these causes. She remained professionally active until her death in 2020.

Scalia played an important role as an associate justice of the US Supreme Court for 30 years. Not only was he regarded as one of the most important justices in the history of the court, but he was also considered one of the most influential jurists of the 20th century. He was posthumously honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The first African-American member of the US Supreme Court, Thurgood Marshall was an associate justice from 1967 to 1991. Earlier as an attorney, he fought for the abolishment of racial segregation in American public schools. He was also a strong proponent of individual rights. A symbol of black icon, there are numerous memorials in America to honour his legacy.

Sonia Sotomayor, the Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of America, entered the record books when in August 2009 she became the first Hispanic and the fourth woman to be appointed to the court. She’s a strong defendant of the rights of accused and has raised her voice against misdemeanors by the police and the prosecutors, and abuses in prisons.

Jeanine Pirro is an American TV host and author. Over the years, she has made important contributions to The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet, a syndicated morning talk show. As a former prosecutor and New York State judge, Jeanine Pirro played an important role in several cases involving crimes against the elderly and domestic abuse.

Sandra Day O’Connor is a retired attorney who became the first woman to serve as the associate justice of the Supreme Court of the US when she took office in 1981. While serving as the associate justice, O’Connor was considered one of the most powerful women in the world. In 2009, she was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. 

Stephen Breyer is an American lawyer, legal scholar, and jurist. Since August 1994, Breyer has been serving as an associate justice of the US Supreme Court after being nominated by President Bill Clinton in May 1994. He is also credited with writing several influential textbooks while working as a lecturer and law professor at Harvard Law School in the 1960s. 

Judith Sheindlin is a prosecution lawyer, television personality, and author. Since 1996, she has been presiding over her own arbitration reality court show Judge Judy, which has won four Daytime Emmy Awards. The longest-serving judge in the history of the courtroom-themed program, Judith Sheindlin was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Emmy for her work.

The current associate justice of the Supreme Court of the US, Samuel Alito is only the second Italian American to serve on the court. Samuel Alito's journey from being an adjunct professor to one of the most powerful men in the American justice system is quite inspirational.

David Souter was the associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1990 to 2009. He has also been a prosecutor, the attorney general of New Hampshire, and the associate justice of both the Superior Court and Supreme Court of New Hampshire. He now judges at the circuit court level.

Eric Holder is an American lawyer. In 2008, Legal Times magazine described him as one of the visionaries and named him in its list of the Greatest Washington Lawyers of the Past 30 Years. In 2009, he became the first African American to serve as the Attorney General of the US, a position which he held until 2015. 

Byron White was an American lawyer and football player. He served as an associate justice of the US Supreme Court from 1962 to 1993. Before beginning his legal career, White was part of the Pittsburgh Pirates of the National Football League. He also played a crucial role during World War II, serving as an intelligence officer in the US Navy.

Louis Freeh is an American attorney. From 1991 to 1993, he served as the judge of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. He started his career as an FBI agent and went on to serve as the director of the FBI from 1993 to 2001. He currently works as a consultant in the private sector.

Brett Kavanaugh started serving as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the US after being nominated by Donald Trump in 2018. Interestingly, Christine Blasey Ford accused him of sexually abusing her in the 1980s. Three other women also claimed that they were sexually assaulted by Brett, with one woman recanting her accusation later. Brett has denied all the accusations.