The Supreme Court has turned aside a motion from a political advocacy group that sought to argue that Justice Elena Kagan should not participate in the upcoming blockbuster appeals over the constitutionality of health care reform.
Chief Justice John Roberts expressed "complete confidence" Saturday in his Supreme Court colleagues to fairly decide whether to remove themselves from hot-button cases such as health care reform -- a timely election-year issue that has created a judicial and political headache for the nine-member court.
A political battle is raging over whether three key Supreme Court justices should bow out of the health care case.
The dinner was billed as a "Celebration of Service." The honorees: Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas. The hosts: the Federalist Society, an influential conservative legal group whose membership includes judges, lawmakers and government officials.
Shortly after becoming the nation's 112th Supreme Court justice, Elena Kagan by tradition was presented with a silver cup, engraved with the names of those who preceded her in that particular seat. Speaking Tuesday evening before an audience at a synagogue here, Kagan recalled one name standing out in her mind: Louis Brandeis, the nation's first Jewish justice.
The current Supreme Court is considered a "hot bench." Not because of the room temperature, or the relative good looks of the nine justices. "Hot" as in the spirited, often competitive oral arguments that have livened up -- or injected chaos into -- the public sessions where important legal and constitutional issues are openly debated and discussed.
Justice Elena Kagan must have had her morning cup of coffee. And it showed on the bench Thursday, with a surprising jolt of levity.
The Supreme Court's conservative majority appeared to hold the cards Monday in a key campaign finance reform case involving an Arizona election law that would provide matching funds to underfunded candidates. The justices could continue a recent legal trend and strike down another effort at government restrictions on election spending.
Politics is serious business -- but not all of the time. From the halls of Congress to the campaign trail to the international stage, there's always something that gets a laugh or a second glance.
The presidents of Harvard and Yale universities have expressed interest in ROTC programs after Congress voted to repeal the military's controversial "don't ask, don't tell" policy that has banned openly gay and lesbian service members.
President Barack Obama's longtime legal mentor and current administration adviser has admitted privately telling him that Justice Sonia Sotomayor was "not nearly as smart as she seems to think she is."
Noisy protests at military funerals, immigration reform and violent video games were among the issues on the Supreme Court's docket as the high court began its new term Monday.
CNN's Kate Bolduan previews the hot-button cases the Supreme Court will hear this session.
Justice Elena Kagan made the most of her first day on the Supreme Court bench before reluctantly vanishing behind the burgundy curtains -- leaving behind her bench-mates.
Justice Elena Kagan was welcomed to the Supreme Court by her new colleagues in a brief special ceremony Friday in the ornate courtroom.
In August, Elena Kagan became the 4th woman in history to be sworn in as U.S. Supreme Court Justice.
A formal investiture ceremony will take place Friday for Elena Kagan during a special sitting of the Supreme Court.
Ideology is hard to characterize, particularly in judges who presumably are not disposed to view the law through a strictly political lens.
The Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Roberts is marking its fifth year under his leadership, with a high-powered bench that has been invigorated with four new members in that time to make for a shaky, divided conservative majority.
Elena Kagan, building on a long, diverse legal career in government and academia, was officially sworn in as the 112th justice at the Supreme Court on Saturday, promising to "faithfully and impartially" discharge her new judicial duties.
Elena Kagan was confirmed by the Senate on Thursday to become the 112th justice on the Supreme Court. Here is a look at what happens next:
Solicitor General Elena Kagan was easily confirmed Thursday as the next associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, completing the 50-year-old native New Yorker's climb to the peak of the American legal profession.
President Obama says he's proud that the Supreme Court will soon have three female justices.
Elena Kagan was confirmed as the 112th justice to the Supreme Court Thursday and could be sworn into her judicial post by week's end.
As the Senate nears it vote on the nomination of Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court, the influential Mexican American Legal Defense Fund (MALDEF) has decided not to endorse her and to remain "neutral."
Senators are expected to continue floor debate Wednesday on the nomination of Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court.
Senators began floor debate Tuesday on the nomination of Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court, with Republicans mustering little desire to delay a final vote. The 50-year-old solicitor general is expected to be confirmed as the 112th justice on Thursday, and could be sworn into her judicial post by week's end.
The Senate Judiciary Committee approved the nomination of Elena Kagan as the next Supreme Court justice.
A new poll reveals most Americans would like to see the Senate confirm Solicitor General Elena Kagan to serve on the Supreme Court, but Democrats are more likely to support her.
The Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday approved the nomination of Solicitor General Elena Kagan to become the nation's fourth female Supreme Court justice, setting up a final confirmation vote by the Senate.
The Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday delayed its vote on Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan for a week at the request of the panel's ranking Republican.
As I watched the split screen of the Petraeus hearings and the Kagan hearings this week, two views of what makes America great were clearly on display.
CNN's Barbara Starr reports on what Gen. David Petraeus faces in Afghanistan.
The Senate Judiciary Committee has completed its public questioning of Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan's confirmation hearing by the Senate Judiciary Committee concluded Thursday with witnesses for and against the solicitor general, including former military members who slammed her handling of military recruiters on the Harvard University campus.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan received a mixed reaction Thursday from groups on opposite ends of the gun control debate.
The Supreme Court nominee vowed to enforce the constitution when asked for her personal stance on gun ownership.
Republican senators this week pressed Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan on the degree to which her views mirror those of her mentor Justice Thurgood Marshall, whom Kagan clerked for in 1987-88.
It wasn't all business at Elena Kagan's confirmation hearing as the nominee's sense of humor was on display.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan was hit with a blizzard of questions about politically thorny social and economic issues on the third and final day of her part in her Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday.
If confirmed to the Supreme Court as expected, Elena Kagan would work with and independently of Chief Justice John Roberts. That's the nature of the court's internal dynamics, and the concept of the one justice-one vote system in which the chief justice is often called "first among equals."
Videos of Elena Kagan show she raised questions about Harriet Miers and praised Barack Obama.
It has long been the dream of many a liberal advocate: to have an unabashedly outspoken, cleverly articulate justice who can take on the conservative majority and inspire young progressives for decades to come -- a "Scalia for the Left," as many have called it.
The debate over Elena Kagan's confirmation for the Supreme Court is likely to hinge on the question of whether she is a centrist or a leftist.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan faced senators' questions today and used a dose of humor. CNN's Dana Bash reports.
Elena Kagan is asked about her stance on the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy during her tenure as Harvard Law dean.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan mounted a spirited defense against her Republican critics Tuesday, saying at her Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing that she rejects the empathy standard for judges and believes the written law should be followed, including precedents in most cases.
Elena Kagan was the nominee at her confirmation hearing Monday for the Supreme Court, but you would not be faulted for believing the real spotlight was on those not attending-- the conservative members of the bench who drew so much attention from senators on the Judiciary Committee.
A panel debates whether Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan will be confirmed or fall victim to partisan bickering.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan makes her opening statement before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday that justices on the nation's highest court should be even-handed and impartial in order to promise "nothing less than a fair shake for every American."
Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, talk about Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan.
The political irony for Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan is who she is, what she hopes to be and the path necessary to fulfilling a long-held dream.
Members of the Senate judiciary committee have plenty of ground to cover at this week's confirmation hearing of U.S. Solicitor General Elena Kagan. But when it comes to what big business should expect from President Obama's pick to replace U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, the talking heads are united in their uncertainty: Who really knows what she'll do? She's a wild card.
Ideology is hard to characterize, particularly in judicial candidates who presumably are not disposed to view the law with a strictly political lens. The term "reliably conservative" or "reliably liberal" may be the best a president can hope for when considering candidates for the Supreme Court.
Diversity is not a word that describes the Supreme Court's makeup over most of its existence. Only three women justices have served (the first in 1981), and only two African-Americans (the first in 1967).
President Barack Obama in 2009 nominated Elena Kagan to be the nation's first female solicitor general.
First trimester abortions are legal and constitutionally protected, thanks to the 1973 Roe v. Wade high court ruling. But the current court has proven deeply divided whenever the issue arises, so it is possible a single change in the court's makeup could affect future cases dealing with access to the procedure, and the government's power to regulate it.
Shortly after Elena Kagan left the White House in 1999 to teach at her alma mater, Harvard Law School, the nationwide controversy over military recruiting on campus had just begun to heat up.
Do you want to know more about Supreme Court Justice nominee Elena Kagan? CNN's Mary Snow talks with those in the know.
Top White House officials expressed confidence Friday that Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan will earn the respect and votes of senators during her confirmation hearings, which begin next week.
Every e-mailer's nightmare has become a political reality for Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan, who has 11,000 electronic messages from her years in the Clinton White House now available for public consumption.
The top-ranking Senate Republican refused Sunday to rule out a filibuster against Elena Kagan's confirmation to the Supreme Court.
More old documents unveiled are offering more fresh signs that Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan was an eager, tough-talking political player while working as a lawyer in the Clinton White House.
New documents released Saturday may add new fuel to the debate over Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan, a week before her Senate confirmation hearing begins.
A conservative magazine suggests Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan is "hostile" to gun owners, based on notes she wrote in the Clinton White House in 1996.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan was a key behind-the-scenes player during the investigation of the Whitewater controversy, while working as a top lawyer in the Clinton White House, documents released Friday show.
A decade before being tapped by President Barack Obama to sit on the Supreme Court, Elena Kagan voiced frustration over her ultimately failed 1999 nomination to a federal appeals court seat.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan once believed a federal law to ban physician-assisted suicide was a "fairly terrible idea." The handwritten remarks were part of more than 46,000 documents released Friday, as Senate lawmakers prepare for confirmation hearings for the 50-year-old Kagan.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan took a pragmatic approach to the issue of late-term abortion when working as a top lawyer in the Clinton White House, documents released Friday show.
Funny and flip. Confident at times, nervous at others. An earnest student and a meticulous lawyer. Newly released documents of Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan's not-so-distant past reveal a determined, often blunt-speaking woman with an occasionally silly side.
After being beaten in his bid to keep his seat, Sen. Arlen Specter will make the most of the remainder of his term in office, some observers predict.
Sen. Arlen Specter gives his concession speech after being defeated in the Democratic primary by Rep. Joe Sestak.
The Senate Judiciary Committee will begin its confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan on June 28, Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, announced Wednesday.
The nomination of Elena Kagan to fill the seat of retiring Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens has caused quite a stir on the political left and right, as operatives on both sides try to ascertain exactly where she stands.
In 1995, Elena Kagan published a lengthy book review in the University of Chicago Law Review, titled "Confirmation Messes, Old and New," in which she was critical of the confirmation process for Supreme Court nominees.
Many people have begun to play the game of "Is she or isn't she?" about Elena Kagan, the president's nominee to the Supreme Court. This will prove to be a waste of time and a great distraction from the real issue: her qualifications for the bench.
On both sides of the battle between oppressed groups and their oppressors exist extremists. On one side are those whose prejudices help sustain the inequities most of us are trying to eradicate. On the other are those who refuse to see any significant progress, either because their worldview is seen through a victim's lens or they make their living picking fights.
Elena Kagan traversed the Capitol on Wednesday meeting Senators who could approve her nomination to the Supreme Court.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan received critical cover from moderate Republicans on Thursday on two issues likely to dominate her upcoming confirmation hearings: gays in the military and judicial experience.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan met with Sen. Harry Reid as part of a series of briefings with government officials.
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan on Wednesday kicked off what has become a ritual for modern high court nominees: making the rounds of key senators' offices on Capitol Hill while saying little to a boisterous press corps in tow.
President Obama took a key step in cementing his judicial legacy Monday, nominating Solicitor General Elena Kagan to replace retiring Justice John Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court.
CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin talks about his law school classmate, Elena Kagan.
In the Hunter College High School yearbook of 1977, Elena Kagan is pictured in a judge's robe and holding a gavel.
President Obama named U.S. Solicitor General Elena Kagan on Monday as his nominee to replace retiring Justice John Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court.
CNN's Kate Bolduan profiles Solicitor General and possible Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan.
President Obama named Solicitor General Elena Kagan as his nominee to replace retiring Justice John Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court.
"You are not my people." That was Elena Kagan's blunt but light-hearted declaration when she greeted conservative legal minds meeting at Harvard's prestigious law school in 2005.
CNN's Kate Bolduan reports on the real-world stakes for the upcoming Supreme Court vacancy.
If a white Republican president of the United States appointed a white male as his next Supreme Court justice, and upon the inspection of his record, it was discovered that of the 29 full-time tenured or tenured track faculty he hired as dean of Harvard Law, nearly all of them were white men, this would dominate the headlines.
President Obama has nominated Solicitor General Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court, picking her to fill the seat being vacated by retiring Justice John Paul Stevens.
CNN has reported President Obama has personally met with four leading candidates for the upcoming Supreme Court vacancy.
Oral arguments at the Supreme Court are often a time for the ever-colorful Justice Antonin Scalia to attract attention with a provocative display of his rhetorical gifts and sense of humor. Both were in display this week in a pair of cases heard in public session.
The search for a Supreme Court nominee has been trimmed to about half a dozen candidates by top White House officials, and an announcement may come by month's end, two sources close to the selection process tell CNN.
I sometimes marvel that I probably couldn't get hired at my law school today.
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