Elena Kagan
Elena Kagan
Elena Kagan is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Kagan is the Court's 112th justice and fourth female justice...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionSupreme Court Justice
Date of Birth28 April 1960
CityNew York City, NY
CountryUnited States of America
school law political
I've led a school whose faculty and students examine and discuss and debate every aspect of our law and legal system. And what I've learned most is that no one has a monopoly on truth or wisdom. I've learned that we make progress by listening to each other, across every apparent political or ideological divide.
rights law democracy
Law matters, because it keeps us safe, because it protects our most fundamental rights and freedoms, and because it is the foundation of our democracy.
couple gay thinking
Suppose a state said that, Because we think that the focus of marriage really should be on procreation, we are not going to give marriage licenses anymore to any couple where both people are over the age of 55. Would that be constitutional?
order law goal
Perhaps most important, judges will have goals. And because this is so, judges will often try to mold and steer the law in order to promote certain ethical values and achieve certain social ends. Such activity is not necessarily wrong or invalid.
chinese restaurants jew
Like all Jews, I was probably at a Chinese restaurant!
two views political
It is absolutely true that I have served in two Democratic administrations. You can tell something from me and my political views from that.
would-be judgment
My politics would be, must be, have to be, completely separate from my judgment.
girl growing-up smart
It was a very cool thing to be a smart girl, as opposed to some other, different kind. And I think that made a great deal of difference to me growing up and in my life afterward.
sex
There is no federal constitutional right to same-sex marriage.
regret believe achieve
I have no regrets. I don't believe in looking back. What I am proudest of? Working really hard... and achieving as much as I could.
thinking justice clerks
I think the nine justices think the solicitor general is the 35th clerk.
gratitude kindness inspiration
I owe a debt of gratitude to two other living Justices. Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg paved the way for me and so many other women in my generation. Their pioneering lives have created boundless possibilities for women in the law. I thank them for their inspiration and also for the personal kindnesses they have shown me.
meaningful air issues
When the Senate ceases to engage nominees in meaningful discussion of legal issues, the confirmation process takes on an air of vacuity and farce, and the Senate becomes incapable of either properly evaluating nominees or appropriately educating the public.
self law done
In fact, corporate and union moneys go overwhelmingly to incumbents, so limiting that money, as Congress did in the campaign finance law, may be the single most self-denying thing that Congress has ever done.