Supreme Court disclosures detail millions in justices book payments
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The latest in politics and policy. Direct to your inbox. Sign up for the The Gavel newsletter SubscribeThe Supreme Court justices’ annual financial disclosures were released Tuesday, revealing millions of dollars in combined book payments to the justices in 2024.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson took in the most, disclosing a nearly $2.07 million book advance from Penguin Random House, which published her memoir, “Lovely One,” in September. Jackson received nearly $894,000 the year prior.
Jackson has been on a nationwide book tour between court sessions. She reported her publisher reimbursing her for more than a dozen tour stops between the release and Dec. 31. The tour has continued into 2025.
Justice Neil Gorsuch, meanwhile, reported just $259.95 in royalties for his 2009 book “The Future of Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia,” published by Princeton University Press. That book has returned similar payouts for the last several years.
His 2024 book “Over Ruled,” published by HarperCollins, brought in $250,000 in royalties. He reported receiving the same amount from the publisher in 2021 and 2023.
And Justice Sonia Sotomayor received a $60,000 advance and nearly $74,000 in royalties from Penguin Random House, which has published her series of children's books. Earlier this year, the company announced it was publishing Sotomayor’s newest book, “Just Shine,” in September.
Two retired justices also reported book payments. Retired Justice Stephen Breyer, who published a book last year defending his legal pragmatism, reported more than $130,000, while retired Justice Anthony Kennedy received nearly $32,000.
Kennedy is one of three justices with known book projects in the works:
- He was slated to release a two-volume memoir last year. It’s now only one volume, set for release on Oct. 14 with Simon & Schuster.
- Justice Amy Coney Barrett will publish a book with Penguin Random House on Sept. 9. She disclosed $425,000 in book royalties in 2021, but her deal reportedly includes an advance totaling $2 million.
- Justice Brett Kavanaugh is planning a legal memoir with the conservative Center Street imprint, Axios reported last year, and the justice received $340,000 in royalties in 2022. Center Street did not return a request for comment on the project.
The justices’ book earnings and their tours have come under greater scrutiny in recent years, fueled by a 2023 Associated Press investigation detailing how Sotomayor’s staff pushed colleges and a library to purchase copies of her book when she visited.
Federal law places a roughly $33,000 cap on the justices’ outside income — each of the three Trump-appointed justices brought in just under that amount from teaching engagements last year — but the cap notably does not apply to book royalties.
The justices’ many books have had ramifications outside their earnings, too.
Last month, five justices' recusals forced the court to decline an appeal in a copyright lawsuit against author Ta-Nehisi Coates. That was likely because four of the five justices who recused — Jackson, Gorsuch, Sotomayor and Barrett — have book deals with Penguin Random House, whose parent company Bertelsmann is a party in the case. (If it sounds familiar, that's because we wrote about it in The Gavel.)
The book earnings stood out as most interesting in financial disclosures that were otherwise par for the course.
While last year’s disclosures revealed new rental properties, newly reported trips and even Beyoncé tickets for Jackson — from Beyoncé — this year’s disclosures had few revelations.
It could signal that the justices have heeded calls to rein in gifts and travel, especially without disclosing it in their annual financial reports. Or, it could just mean the justices had a rather boring year.
And we still don’t have Justice Samuel Alito’s disclosure, as he received a 90-day extension, just like he requested in previous years.
Welcome to The Gavel, The Hill’s weekly courts newsletter from Ella Lee (elee@thehill.com) and Zach Schonfeld (zschonfeld@thehill.com). Email us tips, or reach out to us on X (@ByEllaLee, @ZachASchonfeld) or Signal (elee.03, zachschonfeld.48).
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