Neil Gorsuch - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Neil Gorsuch
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
Assumed office
April 10, 2017
Nominated byDonald Trump
Preceded byAntonin Scalia
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
In office
August 8, 2006 – April 9, 2017
Appointed byGeorge W. Bush
Preceded byDavid M. Ebel
Succeeded byAllison H. Eid
Personal details
Born
Neil McGill Gorsuch

(1967-08-29) August 29, 1967 (age 56)
Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Louise Gorsuch (Present)
ResidenceWashington, D.C. (Official)
Boulder, Colorado (Private)
Alma materColumbia University (BA)
Harvard University (JD)
University College, Oxford (PhD)

Neil McGill Gorsuch (born August 29, 1967) is an American judge and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States since taking office on April 10, 2017. Before, he served as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit from August 8, 2006 through April 9, 2017.[1]

On January 31, 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Gorsuch to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, to fill the seat left vacant after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia.[2] On April 3, the Senate Judiciary committee approved his nomination with a 11-9 vote.[3] On April 7, 2017, the Senate confirmed Gorsuch's nomination to the Supreme Court with a bipartisan 54–45 affirmative vote with three Democratic Senators joining all of the Republican Senators.[4] He was sworn in on April 10, 2017.

Early life[change | change source]

Gorsuch was born in Denver, Colorado. His mother, Anne Gorsuch Burford, served as head of the United States Environmental Protection Agency during the Ronald Reagan administration from 1981 through 1983.

Gorsuch graduated from the Georgetown Preparatory School and received a B.A. from Columbia University (where he was the founder and first chief editor of alternative newspaper The Fed and won a Truman Scholarship). He earned his J.D. from Harvard Law School and Doctorate of Legal Philosophy from Oxford University.

Early career[change | change source]

Before joining the Tenth Circuit, Gorsuch had been a Deputy Associate Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice since 2005. From 1995–2005, Gorsuch was in private practice with the law firm of Kellogg, Huber, Hansen, Todd, Evans & Figel.

United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (2006–2017)[change | change source]

Gorsuch was nominated by President George W. Bush on May 10, 2006 to replace Judge David M. Ebel, who took Senior status in 2006. Gorsuch was confirmed by voice vote by the U.S. Senate on July 20, 2006. Gorsuch was Bush's fifth appointment to the Tenth Circuit. He resigned on April 9, 2017 to serve in the Supreme Court.

Associate Justice to the Supreme Court (2017–present)[change | change source]

Nomination[change | change source]

President Donald Trump introducing Gorsuch as his Supreme Court nominee at the White House, January 2017

In September 2016, during the U.S. presidential election, then-candidate Donald Trump included Gorsuch in a list of 21 current judges whom Trump would think about nominating to the Supreme Court if elected.[5]

In January 2017, after President Trump was elected, some unnamed Trump advisers listed Gorsuch in a shorter list of eight of those names, who they said were the leading contenders to be nominated to replace the seat vacated by the late Justice Antonin Scalia.[6]

On January 31, 2017, President Trump announced his nomination of Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.[2] Trump formally transmitted the nomination to the Senate on February 1, 2017.[7]

Hearings and vote[change | change source]

On April 3, the Senate Judiciary committee approved his nomination with a 11-9 vote.[3] On April 6, 2017, Democrats filibustered (prevented cloture) the confirmation vote of Gorsuch, after which the Senate Republicans invoked the "nuclear option" and removed the option of a filibuster for Supreme Court nominees.[8] On April 7, 2017, the Senate confirmed Gorsuch's nomination to the Supreme Court with a bipartisan 54–45 affirmative vote with three Democratic Senators joining all of the Republican Senators.[4]

Swearing in[change | change source]

Gorsuch was sworn into office on Monday, April 10, 2017, in two ceremonies. The Chief Justice of the United States John G. Roberts administered the first oath of office in a private ceremony at 9:00 a.m. at the Supreme Court. At 11:00 a.m., Justice Anthony Kennedy administered the second oath of office in a public ceremony at the White House.[4][9]

Personal life[change | change source]

Gorsuch and his wife, Louise, have two daughters, Emma (born 1999) and Belinda (born 2001). They live in Boulder, Colorado.[10]

References[change | change source]

  1. ↑ "Supreme Court Clerk Hiring Watch: An Analysis Of The October Term 2016 Clerk Class". Retrieved 2016-08-13.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "President Donald J. Trump nominated Judge Neil Gorsuch to the United States Supreme Court". Office of the White House Press Secretary. January 31, 2017.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Flegenheimer, Matt (April 3, 2017). "Senate Judiciary Committee approves Gorsuch in party-line vote". The New York Times. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Totenberg, Nina (April 7, 2017). "Senate Confirms Gorsuch To Supreme Court". NPR. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
  5. ↑ Carpentier, Megan (24 September 2016). "Trump's supreme court picks: from Tea Party senator to anti-abortion crusader". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
  6. ↑ Gerstein, Josh (January 3, 2017). "A closer look at Trump's potential Supreme Court nominees". Politico.
  7. ↑ "Congressional Record".
  8. ↑ Killough, Ashley. "GOP triggers nuclear option on Neil Gorsuch nomination - CNNPolitics.com". Cnn.com. Retrieved 2017-04-07.
  9. ↑ "President Donald J. Trump Congratulates Judge Neil M. Gorsuch on his Historic Confirmation". April 7, 2017.[permanent dead link]
  10. ↑ Judge Neil Gorsuch

Other websites[change | change source]

Retrieved from "https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Neil_Gorsuch&oldid=8695868"