IX. The Roberts Court
2005–present
An institutionally minded Chief navigates the age of polarization — Dobbs, the major questions doctrine, and a six-justice conservative majority.
John G. Roberts Jr.
The most institutionally minded Chief Justice since Marshall — navigating an era of intense polarization as the Court's pivotal vote after Kennedy's retirement.
Samuel A. Alito Jr.
Author of Dobbs v. Jackson (2022), overturning Roe v. Wade — one of the most consequential opinions in modern Court history.
Sonia Sotomayor
The first Hispanic justice. Her memoir traces the rise from a South Bronx housing project to the nation's highest court — one of the great American success stories.
Elena Kagan
The first woman to serve as Solicitor General before joining the Court. Known for accessible, persuasive opinions and devastating oral-argument questioning.
Neil M. Gorsuch
Scalia's intellectual heir — but where Scalia loved the fight, Gorsuch is a historian who wants to show his work. He would rather be precisely right and slightly isolated than approximately right in comfortable company.
Brett M. Kavanaugh
His confirmation hearings, featuring Christine Blasey Ford's testimony, were among the most dramatic since Clarence Thomas — and equally divisive.
Amy Coney Barrett
Confirmed eight days before the 2020 election to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg's seat — one of the fastest confirmations in modern history.
Ketanji Brown Jackson
The first Black woman on the Supreme Court — a former federal public defender with particular expertise in criminal sentencing.