Justice Sotomayor Asks "Have You Studied The People" In SCOTUS Cases. |
I have. Conservative litigants are vilified. Liberal litigants are celebrated.
Josh Blackman | 1.15.2026 2:11 AM
There was an unusual exchange in Hecox. The Justices had little interest in pursuing the mootness argument. Yet, Justice Sotomayor tried to explain why Hecox would drop the case for non-strategic reasons. Sotomayor suggested that it is a burden to be a named plaintiff in a Supreme Court case. And this pressure could explain why Hecox dropped out after the case left the safe confines of the Ninth Circuit. Justice Sotomayor pressed the Idaho Solicitor General if he "studied your law cases" and if he "studied the people" behind those cases:
JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR: Do you dispute that having a case named after you makes your infamy --infamy live forever? Think of -
MR. HURST: No, Your Honor.
JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR: No? You don't think that Brown and any of the other named plaintiffs that we have in famous cases draw an attention to those people as people? Have you studied your law cases? Students do all the time. I think one of my colleagues had a course where they looked at the lives of the plaintiffs. Do you doubt that having a named case with such an eventful event is going to continue attention on this person?
MR. HURST: I don't doubt there will be attention. And I --I confess I -
JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR: Negative attention.
MR. HURST: And I confess I have studied a few law cases, but -
JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR: Have you studied the people?
I found this question was insulting.
I have studied the people behind Supreme Court cases. And Justice Sotomayor has things--at best--half right. Conservative........