President Biden today nominated D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the United States Supreme Court.
Along with Judge Jackson, California Supreme Court Justice Leondra Kruger was widely considered to be among the top two or three most likely nominees. When he introduced Judge Jackson, President Biden cited Jackson’s experience as a trial judge as a “critical qualification” for the job. That might have been a key factor in Biden’s choice, as Justice Kruger, although having served as a U.S. Supreme Court clerk and a veteran advocate before that court, had no prior judicial experience when Governor Brown appointed her to California’s high court over seven years ago.
No California Supreme Court justice has served on the U.S. Supreme Court before or since President Lincoln nominated Stephen Field in 1863.
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