Sonia Sotomayor in CNN political race coverage
On Civil Rights:
Wise Latina woman reaches better conclusion than white male
At a 2001 UC Berkeley symposium, Sotomayor said that the gender and ethnicity of judges does and should affect their judicial decision-making. From her speech:"By ignoring our differences as women or men of color we do a disservice both to the law and
society. I accept that our experiences as women and people of color affect our decisions. The aspiration to impartiality is just that--it's an aspiration because it denies the fact that we are by our experiences making different choices than others."
Our gender and national origins may and will make a difference in our judging. Justice O'Connor has often been cited as saying that a wise old man and wise old woman will reach the same conclusion in deciding cases. I am not so sure that I agree with
the statement. First, there can never be a universal definition of wise. Second I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experience would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life.
Source: CNN coverage of upcoming Sotomayor hearings
Aug 1, 2009
On Health Care:
Insurers must pay benefits even when sued by beneficiary
On reimbursement of health insurance benefits: In 2005, Sotomayor ruled against a health insurance company that sued the estate of a deceased federal employee who received $157,000 in insurance benefits as the result of an injury.
The wife of the federal employee had won $3.2 million in a separate lawsuit from those whom she claimed caused her husband's injuries.
The health insurance company sued for reimbursement of the benefits paid to the federal employee, saying that a provision in the federal insurance plan requires paid benefits to be reimbursed when the beneficiary is compensated for an injury by a
third party. The Supreme Court upheld Sotomayor's ruling in a 5-4 opinion [on grounds that state law should prevail over federal law. Justices Breyer, Kennedy, Souter, and Alito dissented. (Empire Healthchoice Assurance, Inc. vs. McVeigh, 2005)
Source: CNN coverage of upcoming Sotomayor hearings
Aug 1, 2009
On Jobs:
1995: OK'd free-agent system; ending baseball strike
On the Major League Baseball Strike: As a district court judge, Sotomayor issued an injunction against team owners for alleged violations of the National Labor Relations Act during collective bargaining negotiations with the MLB players association.
The owners had sought to end the system of free agency and salary arbitration and imposed a lock-out against players as negotiations began to break down. The ruling ended the longest baseball strike in history. (NRLB vs. MLB, 1995)
Source: CNN coverage of upcoming Sotomayor hearings
Aug 1, 2009
On Tax Reform:
Some trust fees should be only partly tax deductible
On Taxes (Deductibility of trust fees): In 2006, Sotomayor upheld a lower tax court ruling that certain types of fees paid by a trust are only partly tax deductible.
The Supreme Court upheld Sotomayor's decision but unanimously rejected the reasoning she adopted, saying that her approach "flies in the face of the statutory language." (Knight vs. Commissioner, 2006)
Source: CNN coverage of upcoming Sotomayor hearings
Aug 1, 2009
On Technology:
Newspapers may electronically reprint without permission
On intellectual property & distribution of freelance material: As a district court judge in 1997, Sotomayor heard a case brought by a group of freelance journalists who asserted that various news organizations, including the
New York Times, violated copyright laws by reproducing the freelancers' work on electronic databases and archives such as "Lexis/Nexis" without first obtaining their permission.
Sotomayor ruled against the freelancers and said that publishers were within their rights as outlined by the 1976 Copyright Act. The appellate court reversed Sotomayor's decision, siding with the freelancers, and the
Supreme Court upheld the appellate decision (therefore rejecting Sotomayor's original ruling). Justices Stevens and Breyer dissented, taking Sotomayor's position. (Tasini vs. New York Times, 1997)
Source: CNN coverage of upcoming Sotomayor hearings
Aug 1, 2009
Page last updated: Oct 26, 2024