"Princeton alumna, trustee confirmed as Supreme Court's first Latina justice"

Colleges and Universities A-Z Princeton University
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<p>Senate</a> confirms Sotomayor for high court - White House- msnbc.com</p>

<p>Princeton</a> University - Princeton alumna, trustee confirmed as Supreme Court's first Latina justice</p>

<p>"The U.S. Senate Aug. 6 confirmed President Barack Obama's nomination of Princeton alumna and trustee Sonia Sotomayor to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. </p>

<p>When she takes the oath of office in the next few days to fill the seat held by Justice David Souter, who retired in June, she will be the court's first Latina and third female justice. She also will be the first female Princeton graduate and the 11th Princetonian to serve on the court. A formal ceremony is expected to take place in September. . . . (continued)</p>

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<p>Sotomayor is the 11th Supreme Court Justice to have received an undergraduate degree from Princeton which has now graduated more U.S. Supreme Court Justices than any other undergraduate institution in U.S. history. The second leading institutions are Harvard College and Yale College each of which has graduated ten. (These three schools have, of course, been in existence far longer than most other colleges in the country so the comparison is a bit unfair!)</p>

<p>Three Princeton women have registered some interesting political "firsts" in the last year:</p>

<p>--Justice Sotomayor '76 is the first Latina Supreme Court justice in the history of the country.</p>

<p>--First Lady Michelle Obama '85 is the first First Lady of color to be in the White House</p>

<p>--Solicitor General Elena Kagen '81 is the first woman (and one of the first who is Jewish) to be in that position. </p>

<p>Each of them owes her "first", of course, to President Obama, a Columbia College graduate!</p>

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<p>I think this is a win-win for Yale and Princeton, since Princeton UG and Yale Law (and consequently, both universities in a general sense) can claim her as an alumni.</p>

<p>Politically, I’d like to see her rulings before passing judgement on her quality as a Supreme Court justice.</p>

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<p>[Obama</a> names Madoff case judge to fill Sotomayor spot - The Hill’s Blog Briefing Room](<a href=“http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/61843-obama-names-madoff-case-judge-to-fill-sotomayor-spot]Obama”>http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/61843-obama-names-madoff-case-judge-to-fill-sotomayor-spot)</p>

<p>In an ironic twist, the President has nominated Judge Denny Chin (Princeton Class of '75) to fill the now empty seat on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals vacated when Justice Sotomayor (Princeton Class of '76) was elevated to the Supreme Court. One wonders if they knew each other as undergraduates.</p>

<p>Judge Chin will be the only judge of Asian-American descent on the bench of the U.S. Court of Appeals and has, himself, been mentioned as a possible Supreme Court nominee. Were that to happen, he would be the first Asian-American Supreme Court Justice just as Sotomayor was the first Latina Justice.</p>

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<p>I want the next justice to be an Eskimo.</p>