Reactions to the Ketanji Brown Jackson Hearings

Thomas A. Berry

During her Supreme Court confirmation hearings this week, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson ably defended her judicial and professional record.

Highlights of her testimony included her explanation of the many factors that go into sentencing decisions, the complexity of interpreting multiple interacting statutes, and the importance of explaining to all parties in a case exactly what the court has done and why it has done it.

Judge Jackson also eloquently defended the right of every criminal defendant to representation and the bedrock principle that a lawyer should not be conflated with her clients. Particularly encouraging was Judge Jackson’s assurance that when interpreting the Constitution and statutes, she will look to the original public meaning of the text as it was adopted.

After many grueling hours of testimony, there is no reason to believe she will not be confirmed to our highest court in the next few weeks, lending the Court much needed professional diversity as its first ever former federal public defender.