Ketanji Brown Jackson Confirmed to the Supreme Court

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on April 7 to be an associate justice of the Supreme Court. She will fill the seat of Justice Stephen Breyer, who has announced he will retire from the Court this summer.  

Judge Jackson’s nomination and confirmation represent many historic changes for the Court. She will be the first African-American woman and only the sixth woman ever to serve on the court and the first Supreme Court Justice with experience as a federal public defender. Her record on lower courts has shown a commitment to upholding workers’ rights, in particular the collective bargaining rights of federal employees.  

“For decades, anti-worker forces have turned to the judiciary to gut union power, erode our democratic rights, and delay urgently-needed climate action,” said APWU President Mark Dimondstein. “We need Justices on the Supreme Court who will side with workers over big corporations. The APWU believes Judge Jackson will be that kind of Justice and I join with the rest of the labor movement in congratulating her on her historic confirmation.” 

Jackson will join the bench following Breyer’s retirement at the end of the Supreme Court’s current term this summer. By law, the new term begins on the first Monday of October. Jackson is President Biden’s first nomination to the Supreme Court.