Justice Sandra Day O’Connor: 40th anniversary of a historic first
July 7 marked 40 years since O’Connor was nominated to the Supreme Court. Scholar Marci A. Hamilton, who clerked for O'Connor, shares her thoughts on O’Connor’s legacy.
Sandra Day O’Connor is sworn in to the Supreme Court by Chief Justice Warren Burger as her husband John O'Connor looks on. (Image: Courtesy of U.S. National Archives)
Yesterday marked the 40th anniversary of Sandra Day O’Connor’s nomination by President Ronald Reagan to the Supreme Court, the first woman ever nominated to the nation’s highest court. Two months later the Senate unanimously approved her appointment and on Sept. 25, 1981, she was sworn in by Chief Justice Warren Burger.