#TBT: Record Number Of Women On The Supreme Court

     On August 7th, 2010, Elena Kagan made history as the fourth woman to serve on the Supreme Court, following Sandra Day O'Connor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Sonia Sotomayor. Why so historical? This was the first time that three women served on the court at the same time. Kagan was certainly suited for the lifetime assignment.

     A former legal advisor to the Clinton administration, she served as the Dean of Harvard Law School from 2003 to 2009 and Solicitor General of the United States from 2009 to 2010. Nominated in May of that year, she was confirmed in August. Kagan, appointed by President Obama, is a member of the court's liberal wing, but has been seen as more of a moderate liberal.

 

     Only 50 at the time of her confirmation and 61 today, she is one of the court's younger members. She wrote the majority opinion in Cooper v. Harris, which ruled North Carolina's racial redistricting violated the Constitution. Her writing and legal tone has been described as conversational, accessible, and analogical.