Ahead of the Senate confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, which begin today, the Jewish Center for Justice has issued the following statement:

The JCJ Board of Directors, together with JCJ’s Lawyers’ Committee and judicial nominations working group, has carefully reviewed the qualifications and achievements of Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson. Upon review and consideration, the Jewish Center for Justice strongly encourages the Senate to confirm the nomination of Judge Brown Jackson to the nation’s highest court.

 

Judge Brown Jackson has served on the U.S. Sentencing Commission, as a United States district judge, and on the federal Court of Appeals in Washington, DC. She has a demonstrated record of defending policies of concern to the Jewish Center for Justice community, including criminal justice reform, reproductive rights and other individual civil rights. As a former public defender, Judge Brown Jackson will bring a voice and perspective to the Supreme Court that has long been missing.

 

Judge Jackson has had an illustrative career, beginning with three federal clerkships, including a clerkship for Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer. She served as a federal trial judge for eight years before being confirmed as a judge on the Court of Appeals for the prestigious D.C. Circuit. Her nomination to the Circuit Court enjoyed bipartisan support. She is eminently qualified to serve as a Justice of the Supreme Court. 

 

Importantly, if Judge Brown Jackson’s nomination is confirmed, she will be the first Black woman on the Court, a long overdue development. Her personal history and lived experience would undoubtedly enrich the Court’s work and decisions. The Jewish Center for Justice unreservedly supports Judge Brown Jackson’s nomination. 

Read JCJ’s full set of criteria for vetting federal judicial nominees here.

JCJ Judicial Nominations Working Group

• Ariella Simonds
• Michelle Sampson
• Julie Bank
• Abbi Hertz
• Lisa Laffer
• Elias Chajet
• Rabbi Joel Simonds