Famous American Lawyers & 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.

The second African-American justice to serve on the Supreme Court of America, the appointment of Clarence Thomas in 1991 was controversial. He was accused of sexual harassment by lawyer Anita Hill in public hearings, but was eventually cleared. He is on the conservative side of the court and has been criticised by liberals for opposing issues like gay marriage.

American politician Rudy Giuliani, who served as the Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001, received major attention and praise for his handling of crisis in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks in his city. He was named Time magazine’s Person of the Year in December 2001 for his efforts. However, there have also been allegations of corruption against him.

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.

American journalist Ronan Farrow played a major role in reporting the sexual abuse allegations against Harvey Weinstein. His work, which was published in The New Yorker, earned the magazine the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. He is also responsible for exposing allegations against personalities like jurist Brett Kavanaugh, media executive Les Moonves, and politician Eric Schneiderman.

The 27th president of the United States, William Howard Taft also served as the tenth Chief Justice of the US; he is the only person in the history of the US to have held both the offices. He had a great impact as chief justice and has been regarded as the greatest US chief justices of all time.

The current governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis became the youngest incumbent governor of a US state at the age of 42. Also an attorney and naval officer, Ron DeSantis was honored with the Bronze Star Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal for his military service.

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.

Florida senator Marco Rubio also chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee and the Senate Small Business Committee. He was chosen to state the Republican response to Barack Obama's 2013 State of the Union Address. He has immense support from the Republican Tea Party activists and caters mostly to Latin American voters.

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.

Marcia Clark is best known as the lead prosecutor of the O.J. Simpson murder trial. She has also written several books, including novels from the Rachel Knight series and the Samantha Brinkman series and a non-fiction about the Simpson case. She has also written crime articles for The Daily Beast.

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.

A self-educated lawyer, Abraham Lincoln rose from modest background to become one of the greatest presidents of America. The 16th president of the country, who is also known as Honest Abe and the Great Emancipator, played a crucial role in establishing a truly democratic government, abolished slavery, modernised economy and led the country during the American Civil War.

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. 

Martin D. Ginsburg was one of the most successful tax attorneys and the husband of U.S Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Apart from serving as a lawyer, Martin also taught at several prestigious law schools, such as New York University Law School, Columbia Law School, and Harvard Law School. After representing business magnate Ross Perot in a case, the two became good friends.

The current chief White House correspondent for the Fox News Channel, John Roberts has, in his journalistic career, worked for various television and radio channels before joining CTV, CBS News and CNN. The notable works of the veteran award winning journalist and Canadian Broadcast Hall of Famer include coverage of Presidential debates, Hurricane Irene, Iraq invasion and the Israel war.

The fourth woman to become part of the Supreme Court of the United States as its member, Elena Kagan was nominated by Barack Obama in 2010 to serve as an Associate Justice of the Court. She played a major role in the Cooper v. Harris case by writing the majority opinion of the case.

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. 

James Monroe, a Founding Father of the U.S., served as the American president from 1817 to 1825. He opposed European colonialism and issued the Monroe Doctrine. He had also been a U.S. secretary of state, the Virginia governor, a U.S. Senate member, and the American ambassador to Britain and France.

Lawyer and politician Kirsten Gillibrand is a member of the Democratic Party. Since 2009, she has served as the junior United States Senator from New York. An alumnus of the UCLA School of Law, she practiced law for a few years before entering politics. She is known for speaking against sexual harassment.

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.

A lawyer, law professor, political analyst and a civil rights activist, Maya Harris’s list of achievements is huge. One of the youngest in the US to become a law school dean, Maya Harris has worked with Hillary Clinton and her own sister Kamala Harris in their respective presidential campaigns.

NBC News anchor and broadcast journalist Savannah Guthrie is best known for co-anchoring the show Today. She appeared in the series finale of 30 Rock. She has penned two children’s books, too. She is also a practicing lawyer and has worked with domestic abuse victims.

Mark Levin is an American lawyer and radio personality. He hosts popular shows, such as The Mark Levin Show and Life, Liberty & Levin. Since 2015, he has been contributing immensely as the editor-in-chief of the popular American website Conservative Review. Also a well-known author, Mark Levin has written seven New York Times best-selling books.

Fred Thompson was an American politician, lobbyist, attorney, columnist, radio personality, and actor. From 1994 to 2003, Thompson served as the United States Senator from Tennessee. As an actor, he played important roles in several films and TV series, such as Law & Order and Barbarians at the Gate.

Lawyer and social justice activist, Bryan Stevenson, is known for challenging bias against the poor and minorities in the criminal justice system. He advocates for the poor, fights for children’s rights, and condemns the death penalty. He is the founder of the Equal Justice Initiative. He was honored with the Benjamin Franklin Award from the American Philosophical Society.

Currently a member of the House of Representative from the 45th Congressional District in Orange County, California, American politician Katie Porter practiced law before taking up teaching as her full time profession. Eventually she won the 2018 election to the House and is now a member of the House Natural Resources Committee and deputy chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

One of the Founding Fathers of the United States who signed the famous Paris Treaty, John Jay was best known as the first Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court, although he occupied various other important public positions. He was a diplomat, who shaped his country’s foreign policy. He passed legislation to gradually abolish slavery, but he himself owned five enslaved people.