Sotomayor's staff has often prodded institutions that have hosted the justice to buy her memoir or children's books, works that have earned her at least $3.7 million.
Sonia Sotomayor, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, speaking at BookExpo in New York City. For colleges and libraries seeking a boldfaced name for a guest lecturer, few come bigger than Sonia Sotomayor, the Supreme Court justice who rose from poverty in the Bronx to the nation's highest court.
"This is one of the most basic tenets of ethics laws that protects taxpayer dollars from misuse," said Kedric Payne, a former deputy chief counsel at the Office of Congressional Ethics and current general counsel for the Campaign Legal Center, a nonpartisan government watchdog group in Washington. "The problem at the Supreme Court is there's no one there to say whether this is wrong.
The documents obtained by AP show that the justices' conduct spans their conservative-liberal split. Besides book sales, appearances by the justices were used in hopes of raising money at schools, which often invited major contributors to the events. Justices also lent the allure of their high office to partisan activity.
It was not an isolated push. As Sotomayor prepared for commencement weekend at the University of California, Davis law school, her staff pitched officials there on buying copies of signed books in connection with the event. Before a visit to the University of Wisconsin, the staff suggested a book signing.
"I have never believed that Supreme Court justices should write books to supplement their judicial incomes," said Luttig, who was considered for the Supreme Court by President George W. Bush. "The potential for promotion of the individual justices over the Court at the reputational expense of the Court as an institution, as well as the appearance of such, is unavoidable."
Sotomayor, however, continues to earn royalties — at least $400,000 since 2019 — from sales of her children's literature, including "Just Ask!," her second best-selling book, which was the promotional focus of the 2019 event held in Portland, emails and records show. "Can you please show me the screen where people can purchase books?" Le wrote library staffers as they prepared to make the tickets available. "Are you just placing Just Ask … on the portal or all of the Justice's books."
"Is there a reminder going out that people need to purchase a book at the event or bring a book to get into the signing line?" Le wrote. "Most of the registrants did not purchase books." Some institutions that bought Sotomayor's books initiated the purchases on their own, raising the prospect of high-volume orders with the court as they extended the invitation to host her.
Other colleges have made similar purchases. The University at Albany in New York bought about 3,700 copies before a 2017 appearance. Stony Brook University in New York ordered roughly 3,900 copies in 2018 for use in a first-year reading program.
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