Kagan Confirmation Hearings

In May 2010, President Obama, selected a woman to join the United States Supreme Court. Elena Kagan, U.S. Solicitor General, was nominated to the Supreme Court by President Obama on May 17th, 2010. If confirmed, she would be replacing John Paul Stevens, Associate Justice, who is retiring after being on the bench since 1975.

Transcripts & live video of the confirmation hearings are available on C-SPAN. More information on the Supreme Court confirmation process is available from the Law Library of Congress. Their site also provides links to articles & books written by Kagan, a transcript of her confirmation hearing for Solicitor General, Supreme Court oral argument transcripts and other documents.

Elena Kagan is currently the U.S. solicitor general, the head of the office that represents the federal government before the Supreme Court. Additionally, she has served in the White House counsel’s office and Domestic Policy Council during the Clinton administration, and as the dean of Harvard Law School.
She has a background very different from that of her predecessor, Sonia Sotomayor, who was also appointed by President Obama. Her absence of judicial experience will be questioned as she appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee this week. It has been noted by many that she is the first nominee in 39 years who lacks any judicial experience. It will be interesting to await the outcome as both Democrats and Republicans gauge her potential.

Written By Patty Wellinger & Diane Bauersfeld, Law Librarian Fellow