Anthony Kennedy

Anthony Kennedy
Born	Anthony McLeod Kennedy 23 7, 1936
Birthplace	Sacramento, California, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Jurist, attorney
Known for	Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (1988–2018); swing vote on the Roberts Court; authoring landmark opinions on gay rights, free speech, and detainee rights
Education	Harvard Law School (LL.B.)
Children	3
Awards	Henry J. Friendly Medal (2019)

Anthony McLeod Kennedy (born July 23, 1936) is an American attorney and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1988 until his retirement in 2018. Nominated by President Ronald Reagan in November 1987 and confirmed unanimously by the United States Senate, Kennedy became one of the most consequential justices of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, occupying a pivotal position at the ideological center of the Court for much of his tenure. After the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor in 2006, Kennedy was frequently the decisive vote in closely divided cases on the Roberts Court, shaping American constitutional law on subjects ranging from gay rights and abortion to campaign finance and the rights of wartime detainees. Born and raised in Sacramento, California, Kennedy practiced law in his hometown and served as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit before ascending to the nation's highest court. He authored the majority opinions in several landmark cases, including Obergefell v. Hodges, which established a constitutional right to same-sex marriage nationwide, and Citizens United v. FEC, which transformed the landscape of American campaign finance law. Kennedy retired on July 31, 2018, during the presidency of Donald Trump, and was succeeded by his former law clerk, Brett Kavanaugh.

Early Life

Anthony McLeod Kennedy was born on July 23, 1936, in Sacramento, California. He grew up in a family with deep roots in the legal and political life of California's capital city. His father, Anthony J. Kennedy, was a prominent attorney and lobbyist in Sacramento who maintained a successful legal practice and was well connected in California politics. His mother, Gladys (McLeod) Kennedy, was active in civic affairs.

Growing up in Sacramento, Kennedy was exposed to the workings of government and the legal profession from an early age. As a young man, he had the opportunity to observe the California State Legislature and interact with political figures who frequented his father's practice. This environment helped cultivate an interest in law and public service that would define Kennedy's career.

Kennedy served in the United States Army, specifically in the California Army National Guard, from 1961 to 1962, holding the rank of Private First Class.

Education

Kennedy attended Stanford University for his undergraduate studies, where he earned his bachelor's degree. He then pursued legal education at Harvard Law School, where he received his Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) degree. His education at two of the nation's most prestigious institutions provided him with a rigorous intellectual foundation that would inform his legal reasoning throughout his career on the bench.

Career

Legal Practice in Sacramento

After completing his legal education at Harvard Law School, Kennedy returned to Sacramento, where he took over his father's legal practice following the elder Kennedy's death. In Sacramento, Kennedy built a career as a practicing attorney while also engaging with the broader legal community. He taught constitutional law as a professor at the McGeorge School of Law at the University of the Pacific, a position he held for many years and continued even after his appointment to the federal bench. His teaching exposed generations of law students to constitutional principles and helped establish his reputation as a thoughtful legal scholar.

Kennedy also became involved in California's political and civic life. His connections in Sacramento, combined with his legal expertise, brought him to the attention of state and national political figures, including then-Governor Ronald Reagan, for whom Kennedy reportedly helped draft a tax-limitation proposal in the 1970s.

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

In 1975, President Gerald Ford appointed Kennedy to serve as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, one of the largest and most influential federal appellate courts in the United States. Kennedy succeeded Judge Charles Merton Merrill on the bench. At the time of his appointment, Kennedy was only 38 years old, making him one of the youngest federal appellate judges in the country.

During his thirteen years on the Ninth Circuit, Kennedy developed a reputation as a moderate conservative jurist who approached cases with careful attention to constitutional text and precedent. He authored numerous opinions across a wide range of legal subjects, earning respect from colleagues across the ideological spectrum. His tenure on the Ninth Circuit provided him with extensive experience in federal appellate law and positioned him as a potential candidate for elevation to the Supreme Court.

Nomination to the Supreme Court

Kennedy's path to the Supreme Court came about through unusual circumstances. In June 1987, Associate Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. announced his retirement from the Court. President Reagan initially nominated Judge Robert Bork to fill the vacancy, but Bork's nomination provoked fierce opposition in the Senate and was ultimately rejected in October 1987. Reagan then nominated Judge Douglas Ginsburg, but Ginsburg withdrew his nomination after revelations about past marijuana use.

On November 11, 1987, President Reagan nominated Kennedy as his third choice for the Powell vacancy. Kennedy's nomination was received far more favorably than Bork's had been. During his confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Kennedy presented himself as a moderate, pragmatic jurist committed to interpreting the Constitution with fidelity to its text while acknowledging the importance of precedent and the evolving understanding of constitutional principles.

The Senate confirmed Kennedy by a vote of 97–0 on February 3, 1988, and he was sworn in as an associate justice on February 18, 1988. The unanimous vote reflected the broad bipartisan consensus that Kennedy possessed the qualifications, temperament, and judicial philosophy appropriate for service on the nation's highest court.

Supreme Court Tenure

Kennedy served on the Supreme Court for over thirty years, from 1988 to 2018. Over the course of his tenure, he became one of the most influential justices in modern American history, frequently casting the deciding vote in cases that divided the Court along ideological lines.

Role as Swing Vote

Throughout much of his time on the Court, Kennedy occupied a position between the Court's more liberal and more conservative blocs. This was especially pronounced after the retirement of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor in 2006, when Kennedy became the justice most often at the center of the Court's closely divided decisions. On the Roberts Court, Kennedy's vote was frequently decisive in 5–4 rulings on issues including gay rights, abortion, affirmative action, the death penalty, campaign finance, and the rights of detainees held in the war on terror.

Kennedy's jurisprudence defied easy ideological categorization. He joined the Court's conservative justices in cases such as Citizens United v. FEC and certain federalism decisions, while siding with the Court's liberal justices on issues such as gay rights, the rights of Guantanamo detainees, and certain aspects of abortion law. Some commentators characterized his approach as rooted in a broad conception of individual liberty and dignity, themes that recurred throughout many of his most significant opinions.

Gay Rights Jurisprudence

Kennedy authored the majority opinion in four landmark cases that progressively expanded the constitutional rights of gay and lesbian Americans, forming what legal scholars have described as a cohesive arc in the Court's gay rights jurisprudence.

In Romer v. Evans (1996), Kennedy wrote for a 6–3 majority striking down Colorado's Amendment 2, a state constitutional amendment that prohibited any governmental entity in the state from enacting protections against discrimination based on sexual orientation. Kennedy's opinion held that the amendment violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment because it was motivated by animus toward a particular group and bore no rational relation to a legitimate governmental purpose.

In Lawrence v. Texas (2003), Kennedy authored the 6–3 majority opinion overturning Bowers v. Hardwick (1986) and striking down Texas's sodomy law as unconstitutional. The opinion held that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment protects the right of consenting adults to engage in private sexual conduct without government interference. Kennedy's opinion in Lawrence emphasized the concepts of liberty and dignity that would become hallmarks of his constitutional jurisprudence.

In United States v. Windsor (2013), Kennedy wrote for a 5–4 majority striking down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which had defined marriage for federal purposes as a union between one man and one woman. The decision held that DOMA violated the due process and equal protection principles guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment by treating same-sex couples who were legally married under state law as unmarried for purposes of federal law.

Kennedy's most far-reaching opinion in this area came in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), in which he authored the 5–4 majority opinion holding that the Fourteenth Amendment requires all states to grant and recognize same-sex marriages. The opinion drew on both the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause, arguing that the right to marry is a fundamental liberty that extends to same-sex couples. Kennedy's opinion in Obergefell concluded with language that became widely quoted: "No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family."

Abortion

Kennedy played a significant role in the Court's abortion jurisprudence. In Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992), he co-authored the controlling plurality opinion along with Justices Sandra Day O'Connor and David Souter. The opinion reaffirmed the central holding of Roe v. Wade (1973)—that the Constitution protects a woman's right to choose to have an abortion before fetal viability—while replacing Roe's trimester framework with the "undue burden" standard for evaluating the constitutionality of abortion regulations. The joint opinion in Casey was a landmark in the Court's approach to stare decisis and abortion rights, and Kennedy's participation was seen as essential to preserving the core constitutional protection established in Roe.

Campaign Finance

In Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010), Kennedy authored the 5–4 majority opinion holding that the First Amendment prohibits the government from restricting independent political expenditures by corporations, labor unions, and other associations. The decision struck down portions of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (commonly known as the McCain–Feingold Act) and overruled prior precedent that had upheld restrictions on corporate political speech. The ruling fundamentally reshaped American campaign finance law and generated significant public debate about the role of money in politics. Kennedy's opinion held that political speech does not lose its First Amendment protection simply because its source is a corporation rather than an individual.

Kennedy had long advocated for expansive First Amendment protections in the campaign finance context. His opinion in Citizens United built on views he had expressed in earlier cases, including his dissent in McConnell v. FEC (2003), in which he had argued against the constitutionality of key provisions of the McCain–Feingold Act.

Detainee Rights

Kennedy authored the majority opinion in Boumediene v. Bush (2008), a 5–4 decision holding that foreign nationals detained at Guantanamo Bay have a constitutional right to challenge their detention through habeas corpus petitions in federal court, and that the procedures established by the Military Commissions Act of 2006 were an inadequate substitute for habeas review. The decision marked a significant check on executive power in the context of the War on Terror.

Other Notable Opinions

Beyond the areas discussed above, Kennedy authored or joined significant opinions across a wide range of constitutional and statutory subjects. He wrote opinions addressing the scope of the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment, including cases limiting the use of the death penalty for juvenile offenders and for non-homicide offenses. He also authored opinions on issues of federalism, free speech, and the separation of powers.

Kennedy was known for a distinctive rhetorical style that emphasized themes of liberty, dignity, and the individual's relationship to the state. Legal commentators noted that his opinions frequently invoked broad philosophical concepts and drew on historical and comparative sources, a characteristic that drew both praise and criticism from legal scholars and fellow jurists.

Retirement

On June 27, 2018, Kennedy announced his intention to retire from the Supreme Court, effective July 31, 2018. His retirement during the presidency of Donald Trump provided the president with the opportunity to nominate a successor who could shift the Court's ideological balance. Trump nominated Brett Kavanaugh, who had previously served as one of Kennedy's law clerks, to fill the vacancy. Kavanaugh was confirmed by the Senate on October 6, 2018.

Following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February 2016, Kennedy had served as the senior associate justice of the Court. After the death of Sandra Day O'Connor in December 2023, Kennedy became the oldest living former Supreme Court justice.

Personal Life

Anthony Kennedy married Mary Davis, and the couple have three children. The Kennedy family has maintained its connections to Sacramento and to the legal community. Kennedy continued to teach at the McGeorge School of Law for decades, even while serving on the Supreme Court.

Kennedy has been noted for his interest in promoting civic education and the rule of law. He has spoken publicly about the importance of understanding the Constitution and the principles of American government. In one such appearance, Kennedy discussed the legacy of George Washington and the founding era's contributions to American constitutional governance.

Kennedy also delivered speeches on constitutional interpretation and the role of the judiciary. In a 1986 address, he discussed principles of judicial decision-making and the relationship between law and liberty, themes that would later define much of his Supreme Court jurisprudence.

Recognition

In 2019, Kennedy was awarded the Henry J. Friendly Medal, recognizing his contributions to the law and the judiciary.

Kennedy's impact on American constitutional law has been the subject of extensive academic scholarship and commentary. His role as a frequent swing vote on the Court, combined with his authorship of opinions in some of the most significant constitutional cases of recent decades, has made him one of the most studied justices of his era. Legal scholars have analyzed his jurisprudence from a variety of perspectives, with some emphasizing his libertarian conception of individual rights and others focusing on his approach to judicial restraint and the role of precedent.

The New Yorker profiled Kennedy in 2005, examining his interest in foreign and international law and its influence on his constitutional reasoning, a subject that drew attention and debate among legal commentators and members of Congress. His opinions in cases such as Lawrence v. Texas cited foreign legal developments, a practice that some commentators praised as reflecting a cosmopolitan understanding of constitutional principles and others criticized as inappropriate in American constitutional interpretation.

Legacy

Anthony Kennedy's three decades on the Supreme Court left a substantial mark on American constitutional law. His authorship of the majority opinions in the four major gay rights cases—Romer v. Evans, Lawrence v. Texas, United States v. Windsor, and Obergefell v. Hodges—established a constitutional trajectory that culminated in nationwide marriage equality. These decisions collectively transformed the legal status of gay and lesbian Americans and are among the most consequential rulings in the Court's modern history.

Kennedy's opinion in Citizens United v. FEC reshaped campaign finance regulation in the United States, establishing that the First Amendment protects corporate political speech and opening the door to substantially increased spending in federal elections. The decision remains one of the most debated rulings of the early twenty-first century.

His co-authorship of the joint opinion in Planned Parenthood v. Casey preserved the core holding of Roe v. Wade for more than a quarter century, until the Court's subsequent decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization (2022) overruled both Roe and Casey. Kennedy's role in Casey demonstrated his willingness to break from expected ideological alignments in favor of what he viewed as fidelity to constitutional principles and respect for precedent.

Kennedy's opinion in Boumediene v. Bush affirmed the reach of constitutional habeas corpus protections to foreign nationals detained abroad, establishing an important precedent regarding the limits of executive power during wartime.

As a jurist, Kennedy's emphasis on individual dignity and liberty as organizing principles of constitutional interpretation influenced legal discourse beyond the specific outcomes of the cases he decided. His rhetorical approach, while sometimes criticized as vague or overly broad, articulated a vision of the Constitution as a document that protects individual autonomy against governmental overreach—a vision that resonated across traditional political boundaries.

Kennedy's thirty years of service on the Supreme Court, combined with his thirteen years on the Ninth Circuit, gave him more than four decades of experience as a federal judge. His influence on the development of American constitutional law during this period was substantial, and his legacy continues to be debated and assessed by scholars, practitioners, and commentators.