[ABC] Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson unloaded on her Supreme Court colleagues Friday in a series of sharp dissents, castigating what she called a "pure textualism" approach to interpreting laws, which she said had become a pretext for securing their desired outcomes, and implying the conservative justices have strayed from their oath by showing favoritism to "moneyed interests."The attack on the court's conservative majority by the junior justice and member of the liberal wing is notably pointed and aggressive but stopped short of getting personal. It laid bare the stark divisions on the court and pent-up frustration in the minority over what Jackson described as inconsistent and unfair application of precedent by those in power.
"I'm not a biologist. Or a genius"
Jackson took particular aim at Justice Neil Gorsuch's majority opinion in a case brought by a retired Florida firefighter with Parkinson's disease who had tried to sue under the Americans with Disabilities Act after her former employer, the City of Sanford, canceled extended health insurance coverage for retirees who left the force before serving 25 years because of a disability.
The New Republic - Ketanji Brown Jackson Wants to Save the Supreme Court From Itself
Wiki - Textualism is a formalist theory in which the interpretation of the law is based exclusively on the ordinary meaning of the legal text, where no consideration is given to non-textual sources, such as intention of the law when passed, the problem it was intended to remedy, or significant questions regarding the justice or rectitude of the law.[1]
Related:
Ketanji Brown Jackson 06/06/2025 SCOTUS Unanimously Rules in Favor of Woman Alleging Anti-Heterosexual Discrimination ‐ Massive Blow to DEI
Ketanji Brown Jackson 05/07/2025 Supreme Court allows Trump's ban on transgender troops to take effect
Ketanji Brown Jackson 05/04/2025 US judge strikes down Trump order against law firm Perkins Coie
Ketanji Brown Jackson 06/06/2025 SCOTUS Unanimously Rules in Favor of Woman Alleging Anti-Heterosexual Discrimination ‐ Massive Blow to DEI
Ketanji Brown Jackson 05/07/2025 Supreme Court allows Trump's ban on transgender troops to take effect
Ketanji Brown Jackson 05/04/2025 US judge strikes down Trump order against law firm Perkins Coie