Justice Stephen Breyer confirms retirement from US Supreme Court

27 January 2022, 18:04

Stephen Breyer
Supreme Court Breyer Retirement. Picture: PA

President Joe Biden reiterated his pledge to nominate the first black woman to the Supreme Court.

Joe Biden is meeting retiring Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer at the White House, lauding his long service and formally announcing the judge’s decision to retire.

The two are to deliver remarks in the Roosevelt Room a day after news broke of 83-year-old Justice Breyer’s upcoming retirement. He made it official on Thursday; the Supreme Court sent out his retirement letter just before the two were to meet.

The president is considering at least three judges for the vacancy, and reiterated his pledge to nominate the first black woman to the Supreme Court, saying it was “long overdue”. He promised to have a choice by the end of February.

Joe Biden
Joe Biden (Andrew Harnik/AP)

Since Mr Biden took office in January 2021, he has focused on nominating a diverse group of judges to the federal bench, not just in race but also in professional expertise.

He installed five black women on federal appeals courts, and three more nominations are pending before the Senate, their experience ranging from civil rights work to federal defence.

By the end of his first year, Mr Biden had won the confirmation of 40 judges, the most since Ronald Reagan. Of those, 80% were women and 53% were people of colour, according to the White House.

Biden-Supreme Court
Possible picks for the Supreme Court (AP)

Justice Breyer’s replacement by another liberal justice would not change the ideological make-up of the court. Conservatives outnumber liberals 6-3, and Donald Trump’s three nominees pushed the court even further to the right

Early discussions about a successor are focusing on US Circuit Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, US District Judge J Michelle Childs and California Supreme Court Justice Leondra Kruger, according to sources.

“He has a strong pool to select a candidate from, in addition to other sources. This is an historic opportunity to appoint someone with a strong record on civil and human rights,” said Derrick Johnson, president of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People).

By Press Association

Latest World News

See more Latest World News

Rescuers searching through rubble

Paramedics among the 16 killed by Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon

Soldiers in giant fuel tank

US military drains giant wartime fuel tanks which had poisoned water supply

Sam Bankman-Fried

FTX founder Bankman-Fried facing decades in prison for crypto fraud

Aiden Minnis (left) and Ben Stimson (right) joined the Russian military

British traitor fighting for Russia in Ukraine says he is 'prepared to die' for Putin after family 'disowns him'

Austria Navalny

Portraits of Alexei Navalny unveiled next to Soviet soldier monument in Vienna

Hawaii Wildfire

Hawaii fire survivors moving into housing but 3,000 still in hotels

Trump Investigations Eastman

Judge says former Trump lawyer should be debarred

The cargo ship Dali stuck under part of the structure of the Francis Scott Key Bridge after the ship hit the bridge in Baltimore

Baltimore bridge collapse: Divers recover two bodies from water

Germany Bus Accident

Four killed in German bus accident

Two bodies have been recovered from the water where the Baltimore bridge collapsed.

Two victims of Baltimore bridge collapse named after bodies found 'trapped in truck' by divers

Disgraced Spanish football boss who grabbed and kissed Women's World Cup winner faces two-and-a-half-years in jail

Disgraced Spanish football boss who grabbed and kissed Women's World Cup winner faces two-and-a-half-years in jail

Crocus City Hall

Death toll in Moscow concert hall attack rises to 143

The Amazon logo

Amazon pours additional £2.1bn into AI start-up Anthropic

Jill Biden

Jill Biden writes children’s book about White House cat Willow

Ron DeSantis

Settlement reached in lawsuit between Florida governor Ron DeSantis and Disney

Beyonce

Beyonce shares Cowboy Carter track list ahead of album release