John Roberts
Biography of John Roberts
Full Name and Common Aliases
Full Name: John Glover Roberts Jr.
Common Aliases: John Roberts
Birth and Death Dates
Date of Birth: January 27, 1955
Date of Death: N/A
Nationality and Profession(s)
Nationality: American
Profession(s): Chief Justice of the United States, Lawyer
Early Life and Background
John Glover Roberts Jr. was born on January 27, 1955, in Buffalo, New York. He grew up in a devout Roman Catholic family, the son of Rosemary and John Glover "Jack" Roberts Sr., who worked as an executive for Bethlehem Steel. The family later moved to Long Beach, Indiana, where Roberts spent much of his childhood. He attended La Lumiere School, a private Roman Catholic boarding school in La Porte, Indiana, where he excelled academically and participated in various extracurricular activities, including serving as captain of the football team.
Roberts went on to attend Harvard University, where he graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history in 1976. He continued his education at Harvard Law School, where he became the managing editor of the Harvard Law Review and earned his Juris Doctor degree in 1979. His academic prowess and leadership skills during his formative years laid a strong foundation for his future career in law and public service.
Major Accomplishments
John Roberts's legal career began with a clerkship for Judge Henry Friendly of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, followed by a prestigious clerkship for then-Associate Justice William Rehnquist of the U.S. Supreme Court. These experiences provided him with invaluable insights into the judicial process and honed his legal acumen.
Roberts's career trajectory continued upward as he joined the U.S. Department of Justice and later served as Associate Counsel to President Ronald Reagan. In 1989, he became the Principal Deputy Solicitor General under President George H. W. Bush, where he argued numerous cases before the Supreme Court, further establishing his reputation as a skilled litigator.
In 2003, Roberts was appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, a position that solidified his standing as a leading conservative jurist. His most significant career milestone came in 2005 when President George W. Bush nominated him as the 17th Chief Justice of the United States. Roberts was confirmed by the Senate and assumed office on September 29, 2005, becoming the youngest Chief Justice since John Marshall in 1801.
Notable Works or Actions
As Chief Justice, John Roberts has presided over numerous landmark cases that have shaped American law and society. His tenure is marked by a commitment to judicial restraint and a focus on maintaining the integrity and independence of the judiciary. Roberts has often been a pivotal figure in decisions involving contentious issues such as healthcare, voting rights, and same-sex marriage.
One of his most notable actions was his role in upholding the Affordable Care Act in 2012. In a surprising move, Roberts sided with the liberal justices, writing the majority opinion that upheld the individual mandate as a constitutional exercise of Congress's taxing power. This decision underscored his pragmatic approach to the law and his willingness to prioritize the Court's institutional legitimacy over ideological considerations.
Impact and Legacy
John Roberts's impact on the Supreme Court and American jurisprudence is profound. As Chief Justice, he has navigated the Court through a period of significant political polarization, striving to maintain its role as an impartial arbiter of the law. His leadership style emphasizes consensus-building and collegiality, often seeking narrow rulings that avoid sweeping changes to established legal precedents.
Roberts's legacy is likely to be defined by his efforts to balance conservative principles with a pragmatic approach to judicial decision-making. His tenure has been marked by a commitment to preserving the Court's credibility and ensuring that it remains a co-equal branch of government, free from political influence.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
John Roberts is widely quoted and remembered for his articulate and thoughtful opinions, which reflect his deep understanding of constitutional law and his commitment to the rule of law. His ability to craft nuanced legal arguments and his role as a swing vote in several high-profile cases have made him a central figure in contemporary legal discourse.
Roberts's influence extends beyond his judicial opinions; his leadership of the Supreme Court during a time of intense political division has made him a symbol of judicial independence and integrity. His quotes often reflect his belief in the importance of an impartial judiciary and the need for the Court to rise above partisan politics, resonating with those who value the principles of justice and fairness.
Quotes by John Roberts
John Roberts's insights on:
People, for reasons of their own, often fail to do things that would be good for them or good for society. Those failures - joined with the similar failures of others - can readily have a substantial effect on interstate commerce.
Justice Rehnquist was friendly and unpretentious. He wore scuffed Hush Puppy shoes. That was my first lesson. Clothes do not make the man. The Justice sported long sideburns and Buddy Holly glasses long after they were fashionable. And he wore loud ties that I am confident were never fashionable.
If it’s a situation in which the public is being given access, you can’t discriminate against the media and say, as a general matter, that the media don’t have access, because their access rights, of course, correspond with those of the public.
The Affordable Care Act’s requirement that certain individuals pay a financial penalty for not obtaining health insurance may reasonably be characterized as a tax.
I think judicial temperament is a willingness to step back from your own committed views of the correct jurisprudential approach and evaluate those views in terms of your role as a judge. It’s the difference between being a judge and being a law professor.
End-stage liver disease refers to a liver that’s failing, and a very high percentage of those livers are what we call cirrhotic, or the patient’s liver has become cirrhotic, and what cirrhosis is, is the scarring of the liver tissue.
I find that when I tell lawyer jokes to a mixed audience, the lawyers don’t think they’re funny and the non-lawyers don’t think they’re jokes.
delivered what may have been the shortest opening statement by a modern Supreme Court nominee less than seven minutes, including the thank-yous and two baseball metaphors.
No matter how lofty or sincerely held the goal, those who resort to violence to achieve it are criminals, ... neither the cause ... nor the target of their violence will in any way be considered to mitigate the seriousness of their offense against our laws.