The People’s Parity Project and a coalition of twenty organizations, including the Alliance for Justice, American Constitution Society, League of Conservation Voters, Lambda Legal, and the CT Pro-People Judiciary Coalition recently sent an open letter calling on Governor Ned Lamont to nominate a woman of color from a pro-people background to the current vacancy on the Connecticut Supreme Court.
The letter, sent on August 6th, follows significant advocacy and research from PPP and the coalition around the overrepresentation of former corporate attorneys and prosecutors and relative lack of former public defenders, civil rights, legal aid, labor, environmental, and plaintiffs’ attorneys on Connecticut state courts. Empirical research has shown that the very backgrounds dominating Connecticut courts are the same ones more likely to lead to poor outcomes for ordinary people facing down powerful entities like corporations and the state.
Governor Lamont is expected to announce a nominee sometime before Chief Justice Richard Robinson steps down in September.
The full text of the letter can be found below:
The Honorable Ned Lamont
Governor of the State of Connecticut
Connecticut State Capitol, 210 Capitol Ave.
Hartford, CT 06106
Dear Governor Lamont,
We, the undersigned organizations, write to you as passionate and committed advocates for
justice, equality, and diversity within our judicial system. We commend you for your continued
efforts at increasing the demographic and professional diversity of Connecticut’s lower courts
and urge you to use the upcoming Supreme Court vacancy to bring this spirit to the state’s
highest court.
We would strongly support the nomination and confirmation of a candidate of color to the
Connecticut Supreme Court, particularly a candidate who would expand the professional
diversity of the court. As organizations deeply invested in the improvement of our communities
and the enhancement of our democratic institutions, we firmly believe that the time has come to
rectify the historical underrepresentation of diverse voices in our judiciary.
Despite gains in recent years, a Black woman has still never sat on the Connecticut Supreme
Court. And as the UConn Law chapter of the People’s Parity Project reported in 2023, the state
bench is heavily skewed toward former prosecutors and corporate attorneys, with former public
defenders, legal aid, labor, environmental, and plaintiffs’ attorneys significantly
underrepresented. Nationwide, only about 3% of state supreme court justices have any
non-governmental civil rights experience. Even though judges strive toward objectivity,
empirical studies have shown that judges’ demographic backgrounds and professional
experiences can significantly impact on their judicial opinions.
To account for this influence, it is important to increase the diversity on the bench. When courts
do not reflect the diversity of the people they serve and our nation at large, the credibility in our
justice system suffers. A diverse bench not only enhances the legitimacy of our legal decisions
but also contributes to a broader understanding of the complex issues facing our society.
Connecticut Supreme Court justices essentially determine what the law means in our state, and it
is critically important that their deliberations have representation from all backgrounds to inform
their opinions.
Reflecting on Justice Thurgood Marshall’s contributions to the U.S. Supreme Court, Justice
William Brennan noted that Marshall’s experience both as a civil rights attorney and a Black man
allowed him to speak from “first-hand knowledge of the law’s failure to fulfill its promised
protections for so many Americans.” Acknowledging the importance of having judges with such
experiences, President Biden has prioritized nominating more judges with public interest
experience to the federal bench, and we call on you to do the same here in Connecticut.
As the U.S. Supreme Court moves ever further to the right, infringing on the rights of ordinary
Americans, state courts have become even more important defenders of individual liberties.
Unless we start to balance the courts away from their current corporate and prosecutorial bias,
we will never have a judiciary that truly works for the people. To ensure that we all have a voice
in our courts, we urge you to commit to rebalancing the judiciary and prioritizing the nomination
and confirmation of a candidate from an underrepresented demographic background and with
experience representing individuals, so we can have the pro-people judiciary that we deserve.
Sincerely,
People’s Parity Project
Alliance for Justice
American Constitution Society
Earthjustice
Impact Fund
League of Conservation Voters
Lambda Legal
Connecticut League of Conservation Voters
Good Trouble Advocacy
CT Pro-People Judiciary Coalition
People’s Parity Project at UConn Law
Connecticut Legal Rights Project
Connecticut Justice Alliance
New Britain Racial Justice Coalition
BLM860
Bridgeport Generation Now
It’s Time Waterbury
POWERUP CT
UConn Graduate Student Union
Livingston, Adler, Pulda, Meiklejohn & Kelly, PC
Law Offices of Alexander T. Taubes
