View source for Samuel Alito

{{Short description|US Supreme Court justice since 2006}}
{{protection padlock|small=yes}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2016}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name                = Samuel Alito
| image               = Samuel Alito official photo.jpg
| alt                 = Official portrait of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito
| caption             = Official portrait, 2007
| office              = [[Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States]]
| term_start          = January 31, 2006
| term_end            = 
| nominator           = [[George W. Bush]]
| predecessor         = [[Sandra Day O'Connor]]
| successor           = 
| office1             = Judge of the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit]]
| term_start1         = April 30, 1990
| term_end1           = January 31, 2006
| nominator1          = [[George H. W. Bush]]
| predecessor1        = [[John Joseph Gibbons]]
| successor1          = [[Joseph A. Greenaway Jr.]]
| office2             = [[United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey]]
| predecessor2        = [[Thomas W. Greelish|Thomas Greelish]]
| nominator2          = [[Ronald Reagan]]
| term_start2         = December 10, 1987
| term_end2           = April 30, 1990
| successor2          = [[Michael Chertoff]]
| office3             = [[United States Assistant Attorney General|Deputy Assistant Attorney General]] for the [[Office of Legal Counsel]]
| president3          = [[Ronald Reagan]]
| term_start3         = 1985
| term_end3           = 1987
| predecessor3        = 
| successor3          = 
| birth_name          = Samuel Anthony Alito Jr.
| birth_date          = {{birth date and age|1950|4|1}}
| birth_place         = [[Trenton, New Jersey]], U.S.
| death_date          = 
| death_place         = 
| spouse              = {{marriage|Martha-Ann Bomgardner|1985}}
| children            = 2
| education           = {{plainlist|
* [[Princeton University]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])
* [[Yale University]] ([[Juris Doctor|JD]])}}
| signature           = Samuel Alito signature.svg
| signature_alt       = Cursive signature in ink
| allegiance          = {{flag|United States}}
| branch              = {{flag|United States Army}} (1972)<br>[[File:Seal of the United States Army Reserve.svg|23px]] [[United States Army Reserve]] (1972–1980)
| rank                = [[File:US-O3 insignia.svg|15px]] [[Captain (United States O-3)|Captain]]
| battles             = [[Vietnam War]]
| unit                = [[File:US Army Signal Corps Coat of Arms.svg|23px]] [[Signal Corps (United States Army)|Army Signal Corps]]
| module              = {{Listen|pos=center|embed=yes|filename=Samuel Alito delivers the opinion of the Court in Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association.ogg|title=Samuel Alito's voice|type=speech|description=Samuel Alito delivers the opinion of the Court in ''[[Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association]]''.<br/>Recorded May 14, 2018}}
| awards              = [[File:Cavaliere OMRI BAR.svg|23px]] [[Order of Merit of the Italian Republic]] (2017)
}}
'''Samuel Anthony Alito Jr.''' ({{IPAc-en|ə|ˈ|l|iː|t|oʊ}} {{respell|ə|LEE|toh}}; born April 1, 1950<ref>{{cite web |title=The Supreme Court: Justice Samuel Anthony Alito, Jr. |url=https://supremecourthistory.org/supreme-court-justices/associate-justice-anthony-alito-jr/ |publisher=[[Supreme Court Historical Society]] |access-date=29 May 2025}}</ref>) is an American jurist who serves as an [[Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States|associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States]]. He was [[Samuel Alito Supreme Court nomination|nominated]] to the high court by President [[George W. Bush]] on October 31, 2005, and has served on it since January 31, 2006. After [[Antonin Scalia]], Alito is the second [[Italian-American|Italian American]] justice to serve on the [[U.S. Supreme Court]].

Alito was raised in [[Hamilton Township, Mercer County, New Jersey|Hamilton Township, New Jersey]], and graduated from [[Princeton University]] and [[Yale Law School]]. After law school, he worked as an assistant attorney general for the [[Office of Legal Counsel]] and served as the [[United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey|U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey]]. In 1990, Alito was appointed as a judge on the [[U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit]], where he served until joining the Supreme Court. He has called himself a "practical originalist"<ref name="Originalist"/> and is a member of the Supreme Court's [[Ideological leanings of United States Supreme Court justices|conservative bloc]].<ref name="Granick" />

Alito has written majority opinions in the [[List of landmark court decisions in the United States|landmark cases]] ''[[McDonald v. Chicago]]'' (2010) on firearm rights, ''[[Burwell v. Hobby Lobby]]'' (2014) on insurance coverage, ''[[Janus v. AFSCME]]'' (2018) on public-sector union security agreements, and ''[[Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization]]'' (2022) on abortion.

== Early life and education ==
Alito was born in [[Trenton, New Jersey|Trenton]], New Jersey. He was the son of Samuel A. Alito Sr., a [[Calabria]]n immigrant from [[Roccella Ionica]], [[Calabria]], and Rose Fradusco, an [[Italian Americans|Italian-American]] whose parents came from [[Palazzo San Gervasio]] in [[Basilicata]].<ref name="i-ItalyNY">{{cite news|title=Justice Samuel A. Alito. The Italian Side of the Story|url=http://www.i-italyny.com/magazine/2017-18_BEST_OF/files/assets/basic-html/page26.html|newspaper=i-Italy|date=2017|access-date=May 13, 2019|archive-date=May 13, 2019|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190513222231/http://www.i-italyny.com/magazine/2017-18_BEST_OF/files/assets/basic-html/page26.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Alito called 'perfect' student|url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2005/dec/13/20051213-123632-5671r/|newspaper=[[The Washington Times]]|date=December 13, 2005|access-date=October 20, 2010|archive-date=September 4, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200904074353/https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2005/dec/13/20051213-123632-5671r/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Russakoff|first1=Dale|last2=Becker|first2=Jo|title=A Search for Order, an Answer in the Law|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/07/AR2006010701268.html|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=January 8, 2006|access-date=September 11, 2017|archive-date=November 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191119215354/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/07/AR2006010701268.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Alito's father earned a master's degree at [[Rutgers University]] and was a high school teacher and later the first director of the New Jersey Office of Legislative Services, a state government position he held from 1952 to 1984. Alito's mother was a schoolteacher.<ref>{{cite news |last=<!--Times of Trenton Staff Writers--> |date=2013-02-12 |title=Rose Alito, mother of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito Jr., is mourned during funeral in Hamilton |url=https://www.nj.com/mercer/2013/02/supreme_court_justice_samuel_a.html |work=The Times of Trenton |location=Trenton, New Jersey |access-date=2020-11-15 |archive-date=December 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201219024003/https://www.nj.com/mercer/2013/02/supreme_court_justice_samuel_a.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Alito grew up in [[Hamilton Township, Mercer County, New Jersey|Hamilton Township, New Jersey]], a suburb of Trenton.<ref>[[Michael Barone (pundit)|Barone, Michael]]. [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4155/is_20060118/ai_n16000700 "It's inspiring to see Alito's background come to foreground: Alito"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080310030210/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4155/is_20060118/ai_n16000700 |date=March 10, 2008 }}, ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'', January 18, 2006. Retrieved September 7, 2007. "In his opening statement to the Judiciary Committee, Judge Samuel Alito told the senators where he comes from. First, Hamilton Township, N.J., the modest-income suburb of Trenton, where he grew up."</ref> He attended [[Steinert High School]], where he graduated in 1968 as the class [[valedictorian]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.trentonian.com/2018/09/21/supreme-court-justice-sam-alito-returns-to-steinert-high-school-for-library-dedication/|title=Supreme Court Justice Sam Alito returns to Steinert High School for library dedication|first=Sulaiman|last=Abdur-Rahman |date=September 21, 2018}}</ref> subsequently matriculating at [[Princeton University]]. In 1972, he graduated with a [[Bachelor of Arts]], ''[[summa cum laude]]'', from the [[Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs]].<ref name="Findlaw.com">{{Cite web|url=https://supreme.findlaw.com/supreme_court/justices/alito.html|title=Samuel Alito|website=Findlaw.com|access-date=October 11, 2023}}</ref> His senior thesis, supervised by political scientist [[Walter F. Murphy]], was entitled "An Introduction to the Italian Constitutional Court".<ref>{{Cite thesis|url=https://catalog.princeton.edu/catalog/dsp01cz30pt46d|title=An Introduction to the Italian Constitutional Court|first=Samuel|last=Alito|via=catalog.princeton.edu|access-date=May 13, 2020|archive-date=December 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201219023724/https://catalog.princeton.edu/catalog/dsp01cz30pt46d|url-status=live}}</ref>

At Princeton, Alito chaired a student conference in 1971 called "The Boundaries of Privacy in American Society", which supported curbs on domestic intelligence gathering and anticipated the need for [[Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act|a statute]] and [[Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court|a court]] to oversee national security surveillance.<ref>[http://epic.org/privacy/justices/alito/report110205.pdf Report of the Chairman − Samuel Alito] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126012012/https://www.epic.org/privacy/justices/alito/report110205.pdf |date=November 26, 2020 }}, Conference on the Boundaries of Privacy in American Society, Woodrow Wilson Sch. of Pub. & Int'l Affairs, Princeton Univ. at 5 (January 4, 1972).</ref> The conference report itself also called for the [[decriminalization]] of [[sodomy]], and urged an end to discrimination against [[gay]] people in hiring. Alito also led the [[American Whig-Cliosophic Society]]'s Debate Panel during his time at Princeton.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/2005/10/28/13656/|title=The Princetonian|access-date=May 15, 2012|archive-date=July 23, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130723232453/http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/2005/10/28/13656/|url-status=live}}</ref> He avoided Princeton's [[eating clubs at Princeton University|eating clubs]], joining Stevenson Hall instead.<ref name=NYT1nov05>{{cite news|last1=Lewis|first1=Neil A.|author-link1=Neil Lewis (journalist)|last2=Shane|first2=Scott|author-link2=Scott Shane|title=Alito Is Seen as a Methodical Jurist With a Clear Record|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/01/politics/politicsspecial1/alito-is-seen-as-a-methodicaljurist-with-a-clear.html|access-date=2 November 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|page=A1|date=1 November 2005|archive-date=December 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201208183539/https://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/01/politics/politicsspecial1/alito-is-seen-as-a-methodicaljurist-with-a-clear.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In December 1969, while a sophomore at Princeton, Alito received a low lottery number of 32 in the [[Selective Service]] drawing. He became a member of the school's [[United States Army|Army]] [[ROTC]] program.<ref name="reserves">The Washington Post (November 3, 2005) [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/02/AR2005110202722.html "Alito Joined ROTC While at Princeton"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201219021942/https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/02/AR2005110202722.html |date=December 19, 2020 }}.</ref>{{efn|Draft numbers were determined in a lottery based on birthdates; a low draft number increased the likelihood of being selected for compulsory military service overseas during the [[Vietnam War]]. The highest number called during the war was 215.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sss.gov/history-and-records/vietnam-lotteries/ |title=Vietnam Lotteries |website=SSS.gov |publisher=Selective Service System |location=Washington, DC |access-date=July 15, 2023}}</ref>}} Alito was commissioned a [[Second lieutenant (United States)|second lieutenant]] in the [[United States Army Reserve]] in 1972. He began his military duty after graduating from law school in 1975 and served on active duty from September to December while attending the [[Signal Corps (United States Army)|Signal]] Officer Basic Course at [[Fort Gordon]], [[Georgia (U.S. State)|Georgia]]. Alito was promoted to [[First lieutenant (United States)|first lieutenant]] and [[Captain (United States O-3)|captain]], and completed his service obligation as a member of the inactive reserve before being honorably discharged in 1980.<ref name="reserves"/>

At Princeton, Alito was "almost alone" in his familiarity with the writings of [[John Marshall Harlan II]]<ref name="princeton">Bernstein, Mark F. (2006).[http://www.princeton.edu/paw/archive_new/PAW05-06/09-0308/features_alito.html "A Tiger on the Court: Sam Alito '72 at Princeton,"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180615212154/http://www.princeton.edu/paw/archive_new/PAW05-06/09-0308/features_alito.html |date=June 15, 2018 }} ''Princeton Alumni Weekly'', March 8. Retrieved June 2, 2017.</ref> and was much influenced by the course on constitutional interpretation taught by [[Walter F. Murphy]], also his faculty adviser.<ref name="princeton"/> During his senior year at Princeton, Alito moved out of New Jersey for the first time to study in Italy, where he wrote his thesis on the Italian legal system.<ref name="supreme conflict">{{cite book
  | title = Supreme Conflict: The Inside Story of the Struggle for Control of the United States Supreme Court
  | author = Jan Crawford Greenburg
  | publisher = Penguin Group
  | year = 2007
  | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=SQxqXLSy9wcC&pg=PA290
  | access-date = October 20, 2008
  | isbn = 978-1-59420-101-1
  | archive-date = May 6, 2016
  | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160506061504/https://books.google.com/books?id=SQxqXLSy9wcC&pg=PA290
  | url-status = live
  }}</ref> Graduating in 1972, Alito left a sign of his aspirations in his yearbook, which said that he hoped to "eventually warm a seat on the Supreme Court".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.deseret.com/2005/11/1/19920344/alito-s-made-mark-as-conservative|title=Alito's made mark as conservative|date=November 1, 2005|website=Deseret News}}</ref>

Alito then attended [[Yale Law School]], where he served as an editor of the ''[[Yale Law Journal]]'' and earned a [[Juris Doctor]] in 1975.<ref name="Findlaw.com"/>

== Early legal career ==
After graduating from law school, Alito [[Law clerk|clerked]] for [[United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit|Third Circuit]] appeals judge [[Leonard I. Garth]] in [[Newark, New Jersey]], in 1976 and 1977.<ref name="supreme conflict"/> He interviewed with Supreme Court Justice [[Byron White]] for a clerkship but was not hired.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://supremecourt.c-span.org/Video/JusticeOwnWords/SC_Jus_Alito.aspx |title=C-SPAN Supreme Court Week&nbsp;– Justices In Their Own Words&nbsp;– Interview With Associate Justice Samuel Alito |publisher=Supremecourt.c-span.org |date=January 31, 2006 |access-date=May 4, 2011 |archive-date=July 25, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725113025/http://supremecourt.c-span.org/Video/JusticeOwnWords/SC_Jus_Alito.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref> Between 1977 and 1981, Alito was Assistant [[United States Attorney]], [[U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey|District of New Jersey]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Register of the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Courts |date=1988 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office Washington: 1988 |page=92 |edition=54th |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wuHqyaE71vkC&dq=United+States+Attorney+for+the+District+of+New+Jersey+December+10%2C+1987&pg=PA92 |access-date=February 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220224023253/https://books.google.com/books?id=wuHqyaE71vkC&pg=PA92&lpg=PA92&dq=United+States+Attorney+for+the+District+of+New+Jersey+December+10%2C+1987&source=bl&ots=Z7IMjIab4X&sig=ACfU3U0wzG31-VIhtmPbLMnWdOHVJgUw1w&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjTvJ6KpZf2AhXMnOAKHQLmBz4Q6AF6BAgtEAM#v=onepage&q=United%20States%20Attorney%20for%20the%20District%20of%20New%20Jersey%20December%2010%2C%201987&f=false |archive-date=February 24, 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref> There, he served under the then-chief of the appeals division Assistant U.S. Attorney, [[Maryanne Trump Barry]] (Barry, the eldest sister of [[Donald Trump]], later became a federal judge).<ref name=NYT08nov05>{{cite news|last1=Kirkpatrick|first1=David D.|author-link=David D. Kirkpatrick|title=Interlocking Friendships Connect a Chairman and a Nominee|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/08/politics/interlocking-friendships-connect-a-chairman-and-a-nominee.html|access-date=2 November 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=8 November 2005|archive-date=November 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107035810/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/08/politics/interlocking-friendships-connect-a-chairman-and-a-nominee.html|url-status=live}}</ref> While an Assistant U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, he prosecuted many cases involving [[drug trafficking]] and [[organized crime]].<ref>{{cite news|first=Jeffrey|last=Gold|date=October 31, 2005|title=Alito Pushed Organized Crime, Drug Cases|agency=[[Associated Press]]|url=http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/nat-gen/2005/oct/31/103107579.html|newspaper=[[The Las Vegas Sun]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060613194203/http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/nat-gen/2005/oct/31/103107579.html |archive-date=June 13, 2006 }}</ref>

From 1981 to 1985, Alito was Assistant to [[Solicitor General of the United States|U.S. Solicitor General]] [[Rex E. Lee]]. In that capacity he argued 12 cases before the Supreme Court for the federal government.<ref>{{cite web|title=Samuel A. Alito, Jr.|url=https://www.oyez.org/justices/samuel_a_alito_jr|website=[[Oyez Project]]|access-date=3 November 2017|archive-date=November 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107020638/https://www.oyez.org/justices/samuel_a_alito_jr|url-status=live}}</ref> In ''[[Thornburgh v. American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists]]'' (1986), the Supreme Court ruled against [[Charles Fried]] after he rejected a memo by Alito urging the Solicitor General to avoid directly attacking the constitutional right to an abortion.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Kirkpatrick|first1=David D.|title=Alito File Shows Strategy to Curb Abortion Ruling|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/01/politics/politicsspecial1/alito-file-shows-strategy-to-curb-abortion-ruling.html|access-date=2 November 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=1 December 2005|archive-date=November 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107041918/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/01/politics/politicsspecial1/alito-file-shows-strategy-to-curb-abortion-ruling.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Alito lost only two of the cases he argued before the Supreme Court.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Liptak|first1=Adam|author-link=Adam Liptak|title=Before Supreme Court, Alito Had Winning Record|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/20/politics/politicsspecial1/before-supreme-court-alito-had-winning-record.html|access-date=2 November 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=20 November 2005|archive-date=November 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107043848/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/20/politics/politicsspecial1/before-supreme-court-alito-had-winning-record.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

From 1985 to 1987, Alito was [[Deputy Assistant Attorney General]] under [[Charles J. Cooper]] in the [[Office of Legal Counsel]] during the tenure of Attorney General [[Edwin Meese]]. [[John F. Manning]] worked under Alito there.<ref name=NYT1nov05/> Between 1986 and 1987, Alito authored nearly 470 pages of memoranda, in which he argued for expanding his client's law enforcement and personnel authorities.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Kirkpatrick|first1=David D.|title=Alito Memos Supported Expanding Police Powers|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/29/politics/politicsspecial1/alito-memos-supported-expanding-police-powers.html|access-date=2 November 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=29 November 2005|archive-date=November 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107043714/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/29/politics/politicsspecial1/alito-memos-supported-expanding-police-powers.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In his 1985 application for Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Alito espoused [[American conservatism|conservative]] views, naming [[William F. Buckley, Jr.]], the ''[[National Review]]'', [[Alexander Bickel]], and [[Barry Goldwater]]'s [[U.S. presidential election, 1964|1964 presidential campaign]] as major influences. He also expressed concern about [[Earl Warren|Warren Court]] decisions in the areas of criminal procedure, the [[Establishment Clause of the First Amendment|Establishment Clause]], and [[reapportionment]].<ref>{{cite news|first=Bill|last=Sammon|url=http://www.washtimes.com/national/20051114-015136-2101r.htm|title=Alito rejected abortion as a right|newspaper=[[The Washington Times]]|date=November 14, 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051114231032/http://www.washtimes.com/national/20051114-015136-2101r.htm |archive-date=November 14, 2005 }}</ref>

From 1987 to 1990, Alito was the [[United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2013/02/03/us/samuel-alito-fast-facts/index.html|title=Samuel Alito Fast Facts|last=<!--staff byline-->|date=February 3, 2013|website=CNN}}</ref> When he arrived, the office had begun the prosecution of 20 defendants accused of being mob affiliates of [[Anthony Accetturo]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Rangel|first1=Jesus|title=ALL 20 ACQUITTED IN JERSEY MOB CASE|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/08/27/nyregion/all-20-acquitted-in-jersey-mob-case.html|access-date=2 November 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=27 August 1988|archive-date=January 30, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130182628/http://www.nytimes.com/1988/08/27/nyregion/all-20-acquitted-in-jersey-mob-case.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In August 1988, the two-year trial, then the longest federal criminal trial in history, ended in the acquittal of all 20 after less than two days of jury deliberations.<ref name=NYT02nov05>{{cite news|last1=Wakin|first1=Daniel J.|title=A Prosecutor Known for His Common Sense and Straightforward Style|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/02/politics/politicsspecial1/a-prosecutor-known-for-his-common-sense-and.html|access-date=2 November 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=2 November 2005|archive-date=November 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107015153/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/02/politics/politicsspecial1/a-prosecutor-known-for-his-common-sense-and.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Alito soon hired [[Michael Chertoff]] as his chief deputy.<ref name=NYT02nov05/>

After an FBI agent was shot in the line of duty in 1988, Alito personally handled the trial, assigning himself the then-novice [[Stuart Rabner]] as an assistant, and securing the shooter's conviction.<ref name=NYT02nov05/> In March 1988, Alito sought a rehearing of extradition proceedings against two Indian men, represented by [[Ron Kuby]], who were accused of being terrorist assassins, after Alito discovered that the death threats his prosecutor, Judy G. Russell, had received had been sent to her by herself.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Verhovek|first1=Sam Howe|title=Bogus Threats Suspected in Indian Case|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/03/22/nyregion/bogus-threats-suspected-in-indian-case.html|access-date=2 November 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=22 March 1988|archive-date=January 30, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130171506/http://www.nytimes.com/1988/03/22/nyregion/bogus-threats-suspected-in-indian-case.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The prosecutor was later found not guilty of [[obstruction of justice]] by reason of [[insanity defense|insanity]], after psychiatrists found she may have suffered from [[schizophrenia]], with up to four [[dissociative identity disorder|distinct personalities]].<ref name=NYT02nov05/><ref>{{cite news|last1=Schwartz|first1=Ethan|title=EX-PROSECUTOR FOUND INSANE IN CASE OF FAKED THREATS|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1989/03/11/ex-prosecutor-found-insane-in-case-of-faked-threats/b2ebc90f-0205-4949-847a-46019cc8ff1e/|access-date=2 November 2017|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=11 March 1989|archive-date=November 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107030408/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1989/03/11/ex-prosecutor-found-insane-in-case-of-faked-threats/b2ebc90f-0205-4949-847a-46019cc8ff1e/|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1989, Alito prosecuted a member of the [[Japanese Red Army]] for planning a terrorist bombing in Manhattan.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Hanley|first1=Robert|title=U.S. Links Man With 3 Bombs To a Terror Plot|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/02/04/nyregion/us-links-man-with-3-bombs-to-a-terror-plot.html|access-date=2 November 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=4 February 1989|archive-date=August 19, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160819064937/http://www.nytimes.com/1989/02/04/nyregion/us-links-man-with-3-bombs-to-a-terror-plot.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Alito is a member of the [[Federalist Society]],<ref>{{cite book |last=Unger |first=C. |year=2021 |title=American Kompromat |publisher=Penguin Publishing Group |isbn=978-0593182536 |page=123}}</ref> a group of conservative and [[libertarianism|libertarian]] lawyers and legal students interested in conservative legal theory.<ref>{{cite web |date=November 2, 2005 |title=Judicial Society Lauds Alito Nomination |url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/judicial-society-lauds-alito-nomination.amp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108151904/https://www.foxnews.com/story/judicial-society-lauds-alito-nomination.amp |archive-date=November 8, 2021 |website=[[Fox News]]}}</ref>

==Court of Appeals judge==
===Nomination and confirmation===
Third Circuit Judges [[Leonard I. Garth]], for whom Alito clerked, and [[Maryanne Trump Barry]], under whom Alito worked as an assistant U.S. Attorney, recommended Alito's judicial nomination to President [[George H. W. Bush]].<ref name="NYT08nov05" /> On February 20, 1990, Bush nominated Alito to the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit]], to a seat vacated by [[John Joseph Gibbons]]. The [[American Bar Association]] rated Alito "Well Qualified" at the time of his nomination. He was confirmed by [[unanimous consent]] in the [[United States Senate|Senate]] on April 27, 1990,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.congress.gov/nomination/101st-congress/1077|title=PN1077 — Samuel A. Alito Jr. — The Judiciary|website=[[Congress.gov]]| date=April 27, 1990 |access-date=November 24, 2019|archive-date=March 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308020433/https://www.congress.gov/nomination/101st-congress/1077|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/alito-sworn-in-as-high-court-justice/ |title=Alito Sworn In As High Court Justice |work=[[CBS News]] |date=February 11, 2009 |access-date=September 23, 2012 |archive-date=May 15, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130515152746/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/01/31/politics/main1260362.shtml |url-status=live }}</ref> and received his commission three days later. As a Third Circuit judge, his chambers were in [[Newark, New Jersey]].<ref name="supreme conflict" />

===Notable opinions===
{{Conservatism US|jurists}}
;Abortion
* On a Third Circuit panel, the majority in ''[[Planned Parenthood v. Casey]]'' overturned one part of a law regulating abortion, the provision mandating that married women first inform their husbands if they sought an abortion. Alito, the third judge on the panel, disagreed, arguing that he would have upheld the spousal notification requirement along with the rest of the law.

;Federalism
* A dissenting opinion in ''[[United States v. Rybar]]'', 103 F.3d 273 (3d Cir. 1996), arguing that a U.S. law banning private citizens from owning [[submachine gun]]s was similar to one struck down by the Supreme Court in ''[[United States v. Lopez]]'' and thus outside the authority of Congress under the [[Commerce Clause]] of the [[U.S. Constitution]].
* A majority opinion in ''[[Chittister v. Department of Community & Economic Development]]'', 226 F.3d 223 (3d Cir. 2000). This case concerned an employee's claim of wrongful termination under the [[Family and Medical Leave Act]] against the Commonwealth of [[Pennsylvania]]. States are free to maintain [[sovereign immunity]] under the [[U.S. Constitution]]. Since Pennsylvania had maintained its immunity to such suits, Alito affirmed the lower court's dismissal of the employee's claims.

;First Amendment
* A majority opinion in ''[[Saxe v. State College Area School District]]'', 240 F.3d 200 (3d Cir. 2001), holding that a public school district's anti-harassment policy was unconstitutionally overbroad and therefore violated [[First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States|First Amendment]] guarantees of [[free speech]].
* A majority opinion in ''[[ACLU v. Schundler]]'', 168 F.3d 92 (3d Cir. 1999), holding that a government-sponsored holiday display consisting solely of religious symbols was impermissible, but that a mixed display including both secular and religious symbols was permissible if balanced in a generally secular context.
* A dissenting opinion in ''[[C. H. v. Oliva]]'' (3d Cir. 2000), arguing that the removal and subsequent replacement in "a less conspicuous spot" of a kindergartener's religious themed poster was, at least potentially, a violation of his right to free expression.

;Fourth and Eighth Amendments
*A dissenting opinion in ''[[Doe v. Groody]]'', arguing that [[qualified immunity]] should have protected police officers from a finding of having violated constitutional rights when they [[strip-search]]ed a mother and her ten-year-old daughter while carrying out a [[search warrant]] that authorized the search of a residence.
*A unanimous opinion in ''Chadwick v. Janecka'' (3d Cir. 2002), holding that there was "no federal constitutional bar" to the "indefinite confinement" of a [[H. Beatty Chadwick|man imprisoned]] for [[contempt of court|civil contempt]] because he would not pay his $2.5&nbsp;million debt to his wife.

;Civil rights
*A unanimous opinion in ''[[Williams v. Price]]'', 343 F.3d 223 (3d Cir. 2003), granting a writ of [[habeas corpus]] to a black state prisoner after state courts had refused to consider the testimony of a witness who stated that a juror had uttered derogatory remarks about black people during an encounter in the courthouse after the conclusion of the trial.<ref>{{Cite web |date=September 9, 2003 |url=http://vls.law.villanova.edu/locator/3d/Sept2003/002305p.pdf |title=Ronald A. Williams v. James Price, Superintendent, SCI-Pittsburgh; D. Michael Fisher, Attorney General |access-date=October 31, 2005 |archive-date=February 17, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060217211512/http://vls.law.villanova.edu/locator/3d/Sept2003/002305p.pdf }}</ref>
* A dissenting opinion in ''Glass v. Philadelphia Electric Company'', 34 F.3d 188 (3rd Cir. 1994), arguing that a lower court did not abuse its discretion in excluding certain evidence of past conduct that defendant had created a hostile and racist work environment.
* A majority opinion in ''Robinson v. City of Pittsburgh'', 120 F.3d 1286 (3rd Cir. 1997), rejecting a female police officer's [[Equal Protection Clause|Equal Protection]]-based sexual harassment and retaliation claims against the city and certain police officials and rejecting her [[Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964|Title VII]]-based retaliation claim against the city, but allowing her Title VII-based [[sexual harassment]] claim against the city.

==U.S. Supreme Court==
{{BLP sources section|date=October 2023}}
===Nomination and confirmation===
{{Main|Samuel Alito Supreme Court nomination}}

[[File:With President George W. Bush Looking on, Judge Samuel A. Alito Acknowledges his Nomination as Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.jpg|thumb|With President [[George W. Bush]] looking on, Alito acknowledges his nomination.]]

On July 1, 2005, [[Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States|Associate Justice]] [[Sandra Day O'Connor]] announced her retirement from the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] effective upon the confirmation of a successor. President George W. Bush first nominated [[John Roberts]] to the vacancy, but when [[Chief Justice of the United States|Chief Justice]] [[William Rehnquist]] died on September 3, Bush withdrew Roberts's nomination to fill O'Connor's seat and instead nominated Roberts to the Chief Justiceship. On October 3, Bush nominated [[Harriet Miers]] to replace O'Connor. Miers withdrew her acceptance of the nomination on October 27 after encountering widespread opposition.

On October 31, Bush announced that he was nominating Alito to O'Connor's seat, and he submitted the nomination to the Senate on November 10.<ref>{{cite news|first=David D.|last=Kirkpatrick|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=October 31, 2005|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/31/politics/politicsspecial1/31cnd-court.html|title=Parties Set Stage for Showdown on Court Choice|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150121173147/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/31/politics/politicsspecial1/31cnd-court.html |archive-date=January 21, 2015 }}</ref> Alito was unanimously rated "well qualified" to fill the Associate Justice post by the [[American Bar Association]]'s Standing Committee on Federal Judiciary, which measures the professional qualifications of a nominee.<ref>{{cite web|title=Statement of Stephen L. Tober, Standing Committee on Federal Judiciary American Bar Association, concerning the Nomination of the Honorable Samuel A. Alito, Jr. (January 12, 2006)|url=https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/migrated/scfedjud/SCpage/Alito_testimony.authcheckdam.pdf|access-date=3 November 2017|archive-date=March 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304025743/http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/migrated/scfedjud/SCpage/Alito_testimony.authcheckdam.pdf}}</ref> The committee rates judges as "not qualified", "qualified", or "well qualified".<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=[[USA Today]]|date=January 4, 2006|url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2006-01-04-alito_x.htm|title=Alito gets 'well-qualified' rating from American Bar Association|agency=[[Associated Press]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070817072849/http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2006-01-04-alito_x.htm |archive-date=August 17, 2007 }}</ref> [[Leonard Leo]] was selected to play a role in shepherding Alito's appointment through the Senate.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Toobin|first=Jeffrey|author-link=Jeffrey Toobin|title=The Conservative Pipeline to the Supreme Court|url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/04/17/the-conservative-pipeline-to-the-supreme-court|date=April 10, 2017|access-date=October 31, 2020|magazine=[[The New Yorker]]|language=en-us|archive-date=April 10, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190410000810/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/04/17/the-conservative-pipeline-to-the-supreme-court|url-status=live}}</ref>

Alito's confirmation hearing was held from January 9 to 13, 2006. Two active-duty members of the Third Circuit, Judge [[Maryanne Trump Barry]] and Chief Judge [[Anthony J. Scirica]], testified in Alito's confirmation hearing, as did five senior and retired circuit judges.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Stolberg|first1=Sheryl Gay|author-link=Sheryl Gay Stolberg|title=7 Federal Appeals Judges to Testify to Alito's Character|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/07/politics/politicsspecial1/7-federal-appeals-judges-to-testify-to-alitos.html|access-date=26 November 2018|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=January 7, 2006|archive-date=July 30, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170730071059/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/07/politics/politicsspecial1/7-federal-appeals-judges-to-testify-to-alitos.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Alito responded to some 700 questions over 18 hours of testimony. He rejected the use of foreign legal materials in the Constitution, did not state a position on cameras in courtrooms (he had supported them while on the 3rd Circuit), said Congress could choose to outlaw [[LGBT employment discrimination in the United States]] if it wished, and told then-Senator [[Joe Biden]] (D-DE) that he endorsed a weak version of the [[unitary executive theory]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Liptak|first1=Adam|author-link=Adam Liptak|title=Few Glimmers of How Conservative Judge Alito Is|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/13/politics/politicsspecial1/few-glimmers-of-how-conservative-judge-alito-is.html|access-date=2 November 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=2006|page=A1|archive-date=February 12, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180212093747/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/13/politics/politicsspecial1/few-glimmers-of-how-conservative-judge-alito-is.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

On January 24, his nomination was voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on a 10–8 party line vote. Democratic Senators characterized Alito as a hard-right conservative in the mold of [[Clarence Thomas]] or [[Robert Bork]]. Alito professed reluctance to commit to any type of ideology, stating he would act as an impartial referee. He said he would look at abortion with an open mind but would not state how he would rule on ''[[Roe v. Wade]]'' if that decision were to be challenged.

Democrats on the committee asked Alito about his past association with the conservative group [[Concerned Alumni of Princeton]].<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/dems-slam-alitos-alumni-group | website=[[Fox News Channel]] | title=Dems Slam Alito's Alumni Group | date=January 12, 2006 | access-date=July 17, 2009 | url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090904115121/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,181385,00.html | archive-date=September 4, 2009  }}</ref> Alito said that he had listed an affiliation with the group on his application to [[Ronald Reagan]]'s Justice Department in order to establish his conservative credentials: "You have to look at the question that I was responding to and the form that I was filling out... I was applying for a position in the Reagan administration. And my answers were truthful statements, but what I was trying to outline were the things that were relevant to obtaining a political position."<ref name="dp-2006">{{cite news | work = [[Daily Princetonian]] | url = http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/2006/01/13/14235/ | first = Mark | last = Stefanski | date = January 13, 2006 | access-date = August 18, 2009 | title = Alito disavows conservative alumni group | archive-date = March 19, 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120319231040/http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/2006/01/13/14235/ | url-status = live }}</ref> But during the confirmation hearings, he disavowed the group, whose views were criticized as racist and sexist, saying: "I disavow them. I deplore them. They represent things that I have always stood against and I can't express too strongly."<ref name="dp-2006" />

The [[American Civil Liberties Union]] (ACLU) formally opposed Alito's nomination to the Supreme Court. The ACLU has only taken this step three other times in its entire history, opposing the nominations of [[William Rehnquist]], [[Robert Bork]], and [[Brett Kavanaugh]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Krieg |first=Gregory |date=2018-10-01 |title=ACLU TV ads compare Kavanaugh to Bill Clinton, Bill Cosby |url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/01/politics/aclu-new-ad-campaign-against-brett-kavanaugh/index.html |access-date=2024-01-25 |work=CNN |language=en}}</ref> In releasing its report<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/images/asset_upload_file130_23216.pdf|title=Report of the American Civil Liberties Union on the Nomination of Third Circuit Court Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr., to be Associate Justice on the United States Supreme Court|date=December 9, 2005|publisher=[[American Civil Liberties Union]]|access-date=November 25, 2018|archive-date=March 10, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310120001/https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/images/asset_upload_file130_23216.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> on Alito, ACLU Executive Director [[Anthony Romero]] said, "At a time when our president has claimed unprecedented authority to spy on Americans and jail terrorism suspects indefinitely, America needs a Supreme Court justice who will uphold our precious [[civil liberties]]. Alito's record shows a willingness to support government actions that abridge individual freedoms."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.aclu.org/scotus/alito/|title=ACLU Opposes Nomination of Judge Alito|date=January 9, 2006|publisher=[[American Civil Liberties Union]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060112124104/http://www.aclu.org/scotus/alito/|archive-date=2006-01-12}}</ref>

[[File:Alitoswornin.JPG|left|thumb|Alito ceremonially sworn in by [[Chief Justice]] [[John G. Roberts|John Roberts]] the day after his confirmation, February 1, 2006]]
Debate on the nomination began in the full Senate on January 25. After a failed [[filibuster]] attempt by Senator [[John Kerry]], the Senate confirmed Alito to the Supreme Court on January 31 by a vote of 58–42.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5181091 |title=Alito Confirmed as Newest Supreme Court Justice |website=[[NPR]] |date=January 31, 2006 |access-date=May 4, 2011 |archive-date=March 14, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314014930/http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5181091 |url-status=live }}</ref> All Senate Republicans voted in favor of confirmation except [[Lincoln Chafee]], and all Senate Democrats voted against confirmation except [[Tim Johnson (South Dakota politician)|Tim Johnson]], [[Robert Byrd]], [[Kent Conrad]], and [[Ben Nelson]]. An Independent, [[Jim Jeffords]], voted against confirmation.<ref>[https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm Roll Call Vote 109th Congress - 2nd Session (on the confirmation of Samuel Alito of New Jersey)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170321194124/https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm |date=March 21, 2017 }}, ''[[United States Senate]]'', January 31, 2006. Retrieved November 26, 2018.</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Kirkpatrick|first1=David D.|title=Alito Sworn In as Justice After Senate Gives Approval|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/01/politics/politicsspecial1/alito-sworn-in-as-justice-after-senate-gives.html|access-date=26 November 2018|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=1 February 2006|archive-date=November 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181108232102/https://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/01/politics/politicsspecial1/alito-sworn-in-as-justice-after-senate-gives.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Alito was sworn in as an associate justice of the Supreme Court later that day.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/31/politics/politicsspecial1/alito-is-sworn-in-as-justice-after-5842-vote-to.html|title=Alito Is Sworn In as Justice After 58-42 Vote to Confirm Him|first=David|last=Stout|work=The New York Times |date=January 31, 2006|via=NYTimes.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Babington|first=Charles|title=Alito Is Sworn In On High Court: Senators Confirm Conservative Judge Largely on Party Lines|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/14/AR2007081401015.html|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=February 1, 2006|access-date=September 11, 2017|archive-date=November 25, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181125052214/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/14/AR2007081401015.html|url-status=live}}</ref> He became the [[List of Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States|110th justice]], the second Italian-American,<ref name="110th">{{cite news | first=Charles | last=Hurt | url=http://www.washtimes.com/national/20060201-123419-7856r.htm | title=Alito sworn in as 110th justice | work=[[The Washington Times]] | date=February 1, 2006 | access-date=March 30, 2007 | archive-date=February 11, 2007 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070211105916/http://www.washtimes.com/national/20060201-123419-7856r.htm | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="number">{{cite news|title=Alito sworn in as nation's 110th Supreme Court justice |url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/01/31/alito/index.html|website=[[CNN]]|date=January 31, 2006|access-date=February 4, 2006|archive-date=February 4, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060204110153/http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/01/31/alito/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref> the 11th Catholic in the history of the Supreme Court, the fifth Catholic on the Court at the time he assumed office, and one of six on the Court as of 2024.<ref name="adherents">{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20010405054827/http://www.adherents.com/adh_sc.html Religious affiliation of Supreme Court justices]}} ''Note'': Justice [[Sherman Minton]] converted to Catholicism after he retired.</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/06/12/politics/alito-supreme-court-tape-analysis |title=Analysis: Samuel Alito, caught on tape, reinforces why people are skeptical of the Supreme Court &#124; CNN Politics |date=June 12, 2024 }}</ref>

Because Alito joined the Court mid-term, he did not participate in the decisions of most of the early cases in the Court term because he had not heard arguments for them. These decisions were released with an 8-member Court; none were 4–4, so Alito would not have been the deciding vote in any of them if he had participated. Only three of these cases – ''[[Garcetti v. Ceballos]]'', ''[[Hudson v. Michigan]]'', and ''[[Kansas v. Marsh]]'' – were reargued since a tie needed to be broken.{{Clarify|date=May 2024|reason="None were 4-4 but 3 were reargued due to a tie?"}}

===Tenure===
Alito delivered his first written Supreme Court opinion on May 1, 2006, in ''[[Holmes v. South Carolina]]'', a case involving the right of criminal defendants to present evidence that a third party committed the crime. From the beginning of the [[Rehnquist Court]] to the nomination of Justice [[Elena Kagan]], each new justice has been given a unanimous opinion to write as their first Supreme Court opinion; this practice is designed to help "break in" new justices so that each justice has at least one unanimous, uncontroversial opinion under their belt.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Violante |first=Cristina |date=2017-06-12 |title=Behind A Justice's First Opinion: A Tradition Of Unanimity |url=https://www.law360.com/articles/933792/behind-a-justice-s-first-opinion-a-tradition-of-unanimity |access-date=2024-01-25 |website=Law360 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Lane |first=Charles |date=2006-05-02 |title=Justices Reinstate Smith's Claim |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/01/AR2006050101271.html |access-date=2024-01-25 |newspaper=The Washington Post |pages=2 |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286 |quote=Alito's first opinion came in ''Holmes v. South Carolina'', No. 04-1327. Following Supreme Court tradition for new justices, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. assigned Alito a unanimous opinion as his first.}}</ref> Alito wrote for a unanimous court in ordering a new trial for Bobby Lee Holmes due to South Carolina's rule that barred such evidence based on the strength of the prosecution's case, rather than on the relevance and strength of the defense evidence itself. His other majority opinions in his first term were in ''[[Zedner v. United States]]'', ''[[Woodford v. Ngo]]'', and ''[[Arlington Central School District Board of Education v. Murphy]]''.

In his first term, Alito compiled a fairly conservative record. For example, in the three reargued cases (''Garcetti v. Ceballos'', ''Hudson v. Michigan'' and ''Kansas v. Marsh''), Alito created a 5–4 majority by voting with the four other conservative Justices&nbsp;– [[John G. Roberts|Chief Justice John G. Roberts]] and Justices [[Antonin Scalia]], [[Anthony Kennedy]], and [[Clarence Thomas]]. He further voted with the conservative wing of the court on ''[[Sanchez-Llamas v. Oregon]]''<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/05pdf/04-10566.pdf |title=Sanchez-Llamas v. Oregon, 04-10566 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-date=August 13, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110813050241/http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/05pdf/04-10566.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> and ''[[Rapanos v. United States]]''. Alito also dissented in ''[[Hamdan v. Rumsfeld]]'' alongside Justices Scalia and Thomas.

Alito delivered the Supreme Court Historical Society's 2008 Annual Lecture, "The Origin of the Baseball Antitrust Exemption". The lecture was published in two journals.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Alito|first1=Samuel A. Jr.|title=The Origin of the Baseball Antitrust Exemption: Federal Baseball Club of Baltimore, Inc. v. National League of Professional Baseball Clubs|journal=Journal of Supreme Court History|date=June 15, 2009|volume=34|issue=2|pages=183–195|doi=10.1111/j.1540-5818.2009.01208.x| s2cid=247668532 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Alito|first1=Samuel A. Jr.|title=The Origin of the Baseball Antitrust Exemption|journal=Baseball Research Journal|date=2009|volume=38|issue=2|url=http://sabr.org/research/alito-origin-baseball-antitrust-exemption|access-date=10 September 2016|archive-date=September 16, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160916053555/http://sabr.org/research/alito-origin-baseball-antitrust-exemption|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2023, [[Martin–Quinn score]]s suggested that Alito was the most conservative Supreme Court justice.<ref name="Alberti-2022" /> While his voting record is conservative, he does not always join the opinions of the Court's other conservative justices. On February 1, 2006, in Alito's first decision on the Supreme Court, he voted with the majority (6–3) to refuse Missouri's request to vacate the [[stay of execution]] issued by the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit|Eighth Circuit]] for death-row inmate [[Michael Taylor (American murderer)|Michael Taylor]]. Justices Roberts, Scalia and Thomas were in favor of vacating the stay; Missouri had twice asked the justices to lift the stay and permit the execution.<ref>{{cite web|first=Bill|last=Mears|url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/02/01/alito/index.html|title=Justice Alito casts his first vote|website=[[CNN]]|date=February 2, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091004020547/http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/02/01/alito/index.html |archive-date=October 4, 2009 }}</ref> Moreover, despite having been at one time nicknamed "Scalito", Alito's views have differed from those of Scalia (and Thomas), as in the Michael Taylor case and various other cases of the 2005 term. A fierce critic of reliance on legislative history in statutory interpretation,{{citation needed|date=October 2023}} Scalia was the only member of the Court in ''[[Zedner v. United States]]'' not to join a section of Alito's opinion that discussed the legislative history of the statute in question. In two higher-profile cases, one involving the constitutionality of political gerrymandering and one involving [[Campaign finance reform in the United States|campaign finance reform]] (''[[LULAC v. Perry]]'' and ''[[Randall v. Sorrell]]''), Alito adopted narrow positions, declining to join the bolder positions advanced by either philosophical side of the Court. According to a [[SCOTUSblog]] analysis of 2005 term decisions, Alito and Scalia concurred in the result of 86% of decisions in which both participated, and concurred in full in 75%.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.scotusblog.com/movabletype/archives/June28VotingStats.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060927135744/http://www.scotusblog.com/movabletype/archives/June28VotingStats.pdf|title=SCOTUS Blog|archive-date=September 27, 2006}}</ref> Alito also differed from Scalia in applying originalism flexibly to arrive at conservative outcomes "with plodding consistency", rather than following it so strictly as to occasionally produce outcomes unfavorable to conservatives.<ref name="talbot alito" />

[[File:Swearing-in Ceremony for Secretary of Defense Mark Esper (48374478966).jpg|thumb|left|Alito swearing in [[Mark Esper]] as the [[United States Secretary of Defense]] in 2019]]

Alito's majority opinion in the 2008 worker protection case ''[[Gomez-Perez v. Potter]]'' cleared the way for federal workers who experience retaliation after filing age discrimination complaints to sue for damages. He sided with the liberal bloc of the court, inferring protection against retaliation in the federal-sector provision of the [[Age Discrimination in Employment Act]] despite the lack of an explicit provision concerning retaliation.

Alito joined Thomas in writing a separate dissent in ''[[Obergefell v. Hodges]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |author1=Ariane de Vogue |author2=Chandelis Duster |date=October 5, 2020 |title=Justices Thomas and Alito lash out at the decision that cleared way for same-sex marriage |url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/05/politics/clarence-thomas-samuel-alito/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201005170032/https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/05/politics/clarence-thomas-samuel-alito/index.html |archive-date=October 5, 2020 |access-date=2020-10-05 |website=[[CNN]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Kyle Balluck |date=2020-10-05 |title=Supreme Court rejects bid by ex-Kentucky clerk who defied gay marriage ruling to block lawsuit |language=en |work=[[The Hill (newspaper)|The Hill]] |url=https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/519636-supreme-court-rejects-bid-by-ex-kentucky-clerk-who-defied-gay |url-status=live |access-date=2020-10-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201005183101/https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/519636-supreme-court-rejects-bid-by-ex-kentucky-clerk-who-defied-gay |archive-date=October 5, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=October 5, 2020 |title=Supreme Court rejects appeal from county clerk who wouldn't issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/supreme-court-rejects-appeal-county-clerk-who-wouldn-t-issue-n1242124 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210214231434/https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/supreme-court-rejects-appeal-county-clerk-who-wouldn-t-issue-n1242124 |archive-date=February 14, 2021 |access-date=2020-10-05 |website=[[NBC News]] |language=en}}</ref> In 2020, Alito wrote a dissent joined by Thomas to ''[[Bostock v. Clayton County]]'', arguing that Title VII of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]] does not prohibit discrimination by [[sexual orientation]] or [[gender identity]] and criticizing the majority's interpretation of Title VII.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/502729-supreme-court-rules-lgbt-workers-protected-by-civil-rights-law|title=Workers can't be fired for being gay or transgender, Supreme Court rules|first=Harper|last=Neidig|date=June 15, 2020|access-date=June 17, 2020|work=[[The Hill (newspaper)|The Hill]]|archive-date=June 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200615144030/https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/502729-supreme-court-rules-lgbt-workers-protected-by-civil-rights-law|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1= Gerstein |first1= Josh |last2= Rainey |first2= Rebecca |date= June 15, 2020 |title= Supreme Court finds federal law bars LGBT discrimination in workplace |url= https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/15/supreme-court-lgbt-rights-decision-319693 |work=[[Politico]] |access-date= June 17, 2020 |archive-date= June 16, 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200616080113/https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/15/supreme-court-lgbt-rights-decision-319693 |url-status= live }}</ref> In October 2020, Alito agreed with the other justices on the denial of an appeal filed by Kim Davis, a county clerk who refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

On November 12, 2020, Alito made headlines for comments about the [[COVID-19 pandemic in the United States|COVID-19 pandemic]]. Speaking to the [[Federalist Society]], Alito criticized what he called the "loss of individual liberties", saying, "We have never before seen restrictions as severe, extensive and prolonged as those experienced for most of 2020" and calling the pandemic "a Constitutional stress test".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Barnes |first1=Robert |title=Justice Alito says pandemic has resulted in 'unimaginable' restrictions on individual liberty |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/11/12/samuel-alito-federalist-society-speech/ |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |access-date=19 November 2020 |archive-date=November 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119071544/https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/11/12/samuel-alito-federalist-society-speech/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Alito has called himself a "practical [[Originalism|originalist]]"<ref name="Originalist">{{cite web |date=2014-04-21 |title=Sam Alito: A Civil Man |url=https://spectator.org/58731_sam-alito-civil-man/  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170522135245/https://spectator.org/58731_sam-alito-civil-man/ |archive-date=May 22, 2017 |access-date=April 8, 2017 |website=[[The American Spectator]]}}</ref> and is a member of the Court's [[Ideological leanings of United States Supreme Court justices|conservative bloc]].<ref name="YLJ2017.1">{{Cite journal |last=Gorod |first=Brianne J. |date=January 24, 2017 |title=Sam Alito: The Court's Most Consistent Conservative |url=https://www.yalelawjournal.org/pdf/GorodforWebsite_kry8ep3n.pdf |journal=[[The Yale Law Journal]] |volume=126 |pages=362–373}}</ref> He has been described as one of the Court's "most conservative justices".<ref name="Granick">{{Cite news |last=Granick |first=Jennifer Stisa |last2=Sprigman |first2=Christopher Jon |date=2013-06-28 |title=Opinion {{!}} The Criminal N.S.A. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/28/opinion/the-criminal-nsa.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1& |access-date=2025-04-15 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="Alberti-2022">{{Cite web |first1=Oriana |last1=Gonzalez |first2=Danielle |last2=Alberti |date=2022-06-24 |title=The political leanings of the Supreme Court justices |url=https://www.axios.com/2019/06/01/supreme-court-justices-ideology |access-date=2023-01-12 |website=[[Axios (website)|Axios]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Epstein |first1=Lee |last2=Martin |first2=Andrew D. |last3=Segal |first3=Jeffrey A. |last4=Westerland |first4=Chad |date=2007 |title=The Judicial Common Space |journal=Journal of Law, Economics, & Organization |volume=23 |issue=2 |pages=303–325 |doi=10.1093/jleo/ewm024 |issn=8756-6222 |jstor=40058180}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |first1=Oriana |last1=González |first2=Danielle |last2=Alberti |date=2022-06-24 |title=The political leanings of the Supreme Court justices |url=https://www.axios.com/2019/06/01/supreme-court-justices-ideology |access-date=2023-04-07 |website=[[Axios (website)|Axios]]|language=en}}</ref>

According to ''[[The New Yorker]]'', since the 2020 appointment of Justice [[Amy Coney Barrett]], Alito has become "the embodiment of a conservative majority that is ambitious and extreme", overruling progressive precedents from the 1960s and '70s that were previously out of conservatives' reach.<ref name="talbot alito">{{cite news |last1=Talbot |first1=Margaret |title=Justice Alito's Crusade Against a Secular America Isn't Over |date=August 28, 2022 |newspaper=[[The New Yorker]] |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/09/05/justice-alitos-crusade-against-a-secular-america-isnt-over |access-date=February 12, 2023 |archive-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209215031/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/09/05/justice-alitos-crusade-against-a-secular-america-isnt-over }}</ref>

Alito drew controversy in June 2024 when a filmmaker who had been posing as a conservative posted a secret recording in which he could be heard agreeing with her assertion that Christians should win "the moral argument" against the Left and return the country to "a place of godliness".<ref name=alitorecordabc>{{cite news |agency=[[Associated Press|The Associated Press]] |title=Justice Alito questions possibility of political compromise in secret recording |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/justice-alito-questions-possibility-political-compromise-secret-recordings-111005038 |work=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] |language=en |quote="Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito is heard questioning whether compromise between the left and right is possible in a conversation posted on social media"}}</ref><ref name=alitorecordguardian>{{cite web |last1=Tait |first1=Robert |title=Alito doubts US right and left can co-exist and wife criticizes Pride flag in secret recording |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jun/11/samuel-martha-ann-alito-recording |website=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=12 June 2024 |date=11 June 2024}}</ref> When asked about [[political polarization in the United States]], he responded, "one side or the other is going to win".<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Kruzel|first1=John |date=2024-06-11 |title=Supreme Court's Alito appears to back US return to 'godliness' in secret recording |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/us/supreme-courts-alito-appears-back-us-return-godliness-secret-recording-2024-06-11/ |access-date=2024-11-02 |website=Reuters |language=en}}</ref>

==== Abortion jurisprudence ====
[[File:Supreme Court of the United States - Roberts Court 2018 (cropped).jpg|thumb|Samuel Alito, 2018]]
In 2003, Congress passed the [[Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act]], which led to a lawsuit in the case of ''[[Gonzales v. Carhart]]''. The Court had previously ruled in ''[[Stenberg v. Carhart]]'' that a state's ban on [[partial birth abortion]] was unconstitutional because such a ban did not have an exception in the case of a threat to the health of the mother. The membership of the Court changed after ''Stenberg'', with Roberts and Alito replacing Rehnquist (a dissenter in ''Roe'') and O'Connor (a supporter of ''Roe'') respectively. Further, the ban at issue in ''Gonzales v. Carhart'' was a federal statute, rather than a state statute as in the ''Stenberg'' case.

On April 18, 2007, the Supreme Court handed down a decision ruling the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act constitutional. Kennedy wrote for the five-justice majority that Congress was within its power to generally ban the procedure, although the Court left open the door for as-applied challenges. Kennedy said that the challenged statute was consistent with the Court's prior decisions in ''[[Roe v. Wade]]'', ''[[Planned Parenthood v. Casey]]'', and ''Stenberg v. Carhart''.

Alito joined fully in the majority, as did Roberts. Thomas filed a concurring opinion, joined by Scalia, contending that the Court's prior decisions in ''Roe v. Wade'' and ''Planned Parenthood v. Casey'' should be reversed, and also noting that the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act may exceed the powers of Congress under the Commerce Clause. Alito, Roberts, and Kennedy did not join that assertion. Justices [[Ruth Bader Ginsburg]], [[David Souter]], [[Stephen Breyer]], and [[John Paul Stevens]] dissented, contending that the ruling ignored Supreme Court abortion precedent.

On May 2, 2022, ''[[Politico]]'' published a [[Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization#Leaked draft opinion|leak of a first draft of a majority opinion]] by Alito that circulated among the justices in February 2022 for the upcoming decision in ''[[Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization]]''. The opinion would overturn ''[[Roe v. Wade]]'' and ''[[Planned Parenthood v. Casey]]'', and would likely either severely restrict access to abortion or make it completely illegal in states with [[trigger law]]s.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Gerstein |first1=Josh |last2=Ward |first2=Alexander |date=May 2, 2022 |title=Supreme Court has voted to overturn abortion rights, draft opinion shows |work=[[Politico]] |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2022/05/02/supreme-court-abortion-draft-opinion-00029473 |access-date=May 2, 2022}}</ref> On June 24, 2022, the ruling was handed down. It was mostly identical to the leaked draft, with the addition of replies to the dissenting and concurring opinions. Alito wrote that "''Roe'' was egregiously wrong from the start", that its reasoning was "exceptionally weak" and that, "far from bringing about a national settlement of the abortion issue", it had "enflamed debate and deepened division".<ref>{{cite news |last=Liptak |first=Adam  |author-link=Adam Liptak |date=June 24, 2022 |title=In 6-to-3 Ruling, Supreme Court Ends Nearly 50 Years of Abortion Rights |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/24/us/roe-wade-overturned-supreme-court.html |access-date=June 24, 2022}}</ref> In July 2022, Alito gave his first public comments on the ruling in a keynote address for [[Notre Dame Law School]]'s Religious Liberty Initiative in Rome. He mocked several foreign leaders for criticizing the decision, particularly U.K. Prime Minister [[Boris Johnson]], referencing his pending resignation, and [[Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex]], who had compared the ruling to the [[2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gerstein |first=Josh |title=Alito mocks foreign critics of Supreme Court abortion ruling |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2022/07/28/alito-mocks-foreign-critics-of-ruling-00048607 |access-date=July 28, 2022 |website=[[Politico]] |date=July 28, 2022 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |first=Ariane|last=de Vogue|website=[[CNN]] |title=Samuel Alito mocks foreign critics of repealing Roe v. Wade in Rome speech |date=July 28, 2022 |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/28/politics/samuel-alito-religious-liberty-notre-dame-rome/index.html |access-date=July 28, 2022}}</ref> During an October 2022 talk at [[The Heritage Foundation]], Alito said that the leaked opinion made some justices "targets for assassination", referring to the [[Brett Kavanaugh alleged assassination plot|assassination attempt on fellow Justice Brett Kavanaugh]] during that year.<ref>{{Cite web |first=Melissa |last=Quinn |title=Alito says leak of Supreme Court abortion opinion made some justices 'targets for assassination' |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/alito-supreme-court-abortion-opinion-leak-targets-for-assassination/ |date=October 26, 2022 |access-date=October 26, 2022 |website=[[CBS News]] |language=en-US}}</ref> At the same event, he said that "questioning [the Court's] integrity crosses an important line", which many media commentators interpreted as criticism of Kagan's recent statements on the court's overturning of precedent during the past term.<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 26, 2022 |title=Supreme Court justices spar over court legitimacy comments |url=https://apnews.com/article/abortion-us-supreme-court-elena-kagan-samuel-alito-government-and-politics-10bf92ae6830573054da5f756a029d1c |access-date=2023-01-12 |work=[[Associated Press]]|language=en}}</ref>

In November 2022, as the investigation into who had leaked the draft opinion was still ongoing, it was revealed that [[Rob Schenck]], an evangelical minister and former anti-abortion activist, had written Roberts a letter about an alleged previous leak of a Supreme Court decision. He wrote that he had been informed of the outcome of ''[[Burwell v. Hobby Lobby]]'' weeks before the June 2014 decision, authored by Alito and favorable to anti-abortion conservatives, was officially announced.<ref name="Nytimes Schenck" /> Schenck claimed to have heard of the outcome from Gayle Wright, a conservative donor, shortly after she and her husband had lunch with Alito and his wife on June 3, 2014.<ref name="Nytimes Schenck" /> ''[[The New York Times]]'' claims contemporaneous emails written by Schenck "strongly suggested he knew the outcome and the author of the Hobby Lobby decision before it was made public."<ref name="Nytimes Schenck" /> In a statement, Alito denied having revealed the outcome or authorship of any decision before its official announcement, but did not dispute that the June 3 lunch with Wright had occurred.<ref name="Nytimes Schenck">{{cite news |last1=Kantor |first1=Jodi |last2=Becker |first2=Jo |title="Former Anti-Abortion Leader Alleges Another Supreme Court Breach" |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=November 19, 2022 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/19/us/supreme-court-leak-abortion-roe-wade.html |access-date=November 19, 2022 |archive-date=November 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221119211756/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/19/us/supreme-court-leak-abortion-roe-wade.html}}</ref>

On April 21, 2023, Alito dissented when the Supreme Court reversed a ruling by Judge [[Matthew Kacsmaryk]] that would have banned [[mifepristone]] (an [[emergency contraception]] medication) nationwide.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/samuel-alito-abortion-pill-dissent-calls-out-3-justices-expert-2023-4|title=Samuel Alito used his dissent in the abortion pill ruling to call out 3 justices in an act of judiciary 'theater,' SCOTUS expert says|website=[[Business Insider]]|date=April 21, 2023|access-date=April 26, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/apr/21/abortion-pill-ruling-mifepristone-supreme-court-explained|title=Abortion pill case: what does the supreme court order mean and what comes next?|website=[[The Guardian]]|date=April 21, 2023|access-date=April 26, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/22pdf/22a901_3d9g.pdf|title=22a901_3d9g.pdf|website=supremecourt.gov|date=April 21, 2023|access-date=April 26, 2023}}</ref>

==== Free speech jurisprudence ====
[[File:Justice Samuel Alito Swears-In EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt.webm|thumb|Samuel Alito attending the inauguration of U.S. [[Environmental Protection Agency Administrator]] [[Scott Pruitt]]]]
Alito has also dissented from the opinions of the Court's conservative justices on free speech cases, one of which, ''[[Snyder v. Phelps]]'', had to do with [[Westboro Baptist Church]] members' right to protest a military funeral.<ref>{{cite web |title=Facts and Case Summary - Snyder v. Phelps |url=http://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/educational-activities/facts-and-case-summary-snyder-v-phelps |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160318001424/http://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/educational-activities/facts-and-case-summary-snyder-v-phelps |archive-date=March 18, 2016 |access-date=March 19, 2016}}</ref> Alito offered the sole dissenting opinion, saying protesters "were sued under a very well-established tort that goes back to the 19th century, the intentional infliction of emotional, of severe emotional distress. And I thought that this tort constituted a reasonable exception to the First Amendment, but my colleagues disagreed about that."<ref>{{cite web |title=Samuel Alito on Conversations with Bill Kristol |url=http://conversationswithbillkristol.org/video/samuel-alito/?start=3350&end=4117 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160329044015/http://conversationswithbillkristol.org/video/samuel-alito/?start=3350&end=4117 |archive-date=March 29, 2016 |access-date=March 19, 2016}}</ref>

In the 2007 landmark free speech case ''[[Morse v. Frederick]]'', Alito joined Roberts's majority decision that speech advocating drug use can be banned in public schools, but also warned that the ruling must be circumscribed so as not to interfere with political speech, such as discussion of the [[medical marijuana]] debate.

==Personal life==
[[File:Samuel Alito and his family with John Roberts.jpg|right|thumb|Martha-Ann Alito (second from left) in 2006]]
In 1985, Alito married Martha-Ann Bomgardner, a law librarian who met him during his trips to the library as a law clerk.<ref name="supreme conflict" /> They have two adult children, Laura and Philip; Martha-Ann left her profession to raise them.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Martha-Ann Alito: Wife of Supreme Court justice at heart of flag and secret recording controversies |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/who-is-martha-ann-alito-flags-supreme-court-b2560504.html|website=[[The Independent]]|date=June 11, 2024 }}</ref> Alito resided with his family in [[West Caldwell, New Jersey]], before his Supreme Court nomination.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4982475 |title=Alito's Supreme Court Nomination Confirmed |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101001205542/http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4982475 |archive-date=October 1, 2010 |work=[[NPR]] |access-date=September 20, 2007 |quote=Alito and his wife, Martha-Ann Bomgardner, live in West Caldwell, N.J. His sister Rosemary Alito is a labor attorney.}}</ref> He has since moved to [[Alexandria, Virginia]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Vu |first=Nancy |date=May 9, 2022 |title=Alito's home draws latest abortion-rights demonstration after Roe opinion breach |url=https://www.politico.com/amp/news/2022/05/09/samuel-alito-home-protest-abortion-rights-00031285|work=[[Politico]]|access-date=May 9, 2022}}</ref>

Since [[Stephen Breyer]]'s retirement in 2022, Alito has been the only [[Veteran|military veteran]] on the Court.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Preston |first=Matthew |date=April 15, 2022 |title=Ketanji Brown Jackson's Historic Rise Leaves Just One Military Veteran on the Supreme Court |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2022/04/15/supreme-court-ketanji-brown-jackson-veteran/9510328002/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220415131417/https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2022/04/15/supreme-court-ketanji-brown-jackson-veteran/9510328002/ |archive-date=April 15, 2022 |access-date=October 9, 2022 |website=[[USA Today]]}}</ref> He is a baseball fan and a longtime fan of the [[Philadelphia Phillies]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://conversationswithbillkristol.org/video/samuel-alito/|title=Samuel Alito on Conversations with Bill Kristol|access-date=March 19, 2016|archive-date=March 24, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160324164851/http://conversationswithbillkristol.org/video/samuel-alito/|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Phillie Phanatic]] was a special guest at his Supreme Court welcome dinner.<ref>{{Cite web |first=Debra Cassens |last=Weiss |title=A Better-Smelling Phillie Phanatic Helped Welcome Alito to Supreme Court |url=https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/a_better_smelling_philly_phanatic_helped_welcome_alito_to_supreme_court |access-date=2022-07-05 |website=ABA Journal |language=en}}</ref>

In 2013, as part of the ongoing fallout from the [[Edward Snowden]] case, former National Security Agency analyst [[Russell Tice]] revealed that, during 2002 and 2003, the [[National Security Agency]] targeted Alito's phones, and those of his staff and his family, for surveillance.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/nsa-collects-word-for-word-every-domestic-communication |title=I held in my hand Judge Alito's targeting information for his phones and his staff and his family. |website=[[PBS]] |date=August 2013 |access-date=September 11, 2017 |archive-date=March 14, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170314040049/http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/government_programs-july-dec13-whistleblowers_08-01/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6m1XbWOfVk&t=181s |title=NSA Blackmailing Obama? {{!}} Interview with Whistleblower Russ Tice, Breaking the Set, Abby Martin |date=July 9, 2013 |quote=I held Judge Alito's paperwork in my hand. |via=YouTube}}{{failed verification|date=May 2024}}</ref>

=== Teaching ===
As an [[adjunct professor]] at [[Seton Hall University School of Law]] in Newark from 1999 to 2004, Alito taught courses in [[constitutional law]] and an original course on [[terrorism]] and [[civil liberties]]. In 1995, he received the school's [[Thomas More|Saint Thomas More]] Medal "in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the field of law".<ref>{{cite web |title=The Justices of the United States Supreme Court |url=http://supremecourtreview.com/default/justice/index/id/36 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160425133554/http://supremecourtreview.com/default/justice/index/id/36 |archive-date=April 25, 2016 |access-date=2016-05-02 |work=Supreme Court Review}}</ref> On May 25, 2007, he delivered the commencement address at Seton Hall Law's commencement ceremony and received an honorary law degree from the school.<ref>{{cite news |date=May 27, 2007 |title=Alito speaks to Seton Hall grads |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-05-26-alito-seton-hall_N.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108151905/http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-05-26-alito-seton-hall_N.htm |archive-date=November 8, 2021 |access-date=January 21, 2014 |newspaper=[[USA Today]] |agency=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref>

As a visiting professor at [[Duke University School of Law]], Alito taught Current Issues in Constitutional Interpretation in fall 2011 and a course in the Master of Laws in Judicial Studies program in summer 2012.<ref>{{cite web |title=Associate Justice Samuel A. Alito |url=http://www.law.duke.edu/fac/alito |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120919011004/http://law.duke.edu/fac/alito/ |archive-date=September 19, 2012 |access-date=July 13, 2012 |publisher=[[Duke University School of Law]]}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=October 2023}}

== Ethical questions ==
{{See also|Code of Conduct for Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States}}

===Accusations of accepting gifts===
On June 20, 2023, ''ProPublica'' published an investigation of Alito's relationship with billionaire businessman [[Paul Singer (businessman)|Paul Singer]], focusing on a trip Alito and Singer took to a luxury fishing resort in Alaska and suggesting Alito "violated a federal law that requires justices to disclose most gifts", such as private jet travel.<ref name="ProP">{{Cite web |last1=Mierjeski |first1=Justin |last2=Elliott |first2=Joshua |last3=Kaplan |first3=Alex |date=2023-06-20 |title=Justice Samuel Alito Took Luxury Fishing Vacation With GOP Billionaire Who Later Had Cases Before the Court |url=https://www.propublica.org/article/samuel-alito-luxury-fishing-trip-paul-singer-scotus-supreme-court |access-date=June 21, 2023 |website=[[ProPublica]] |language=en}}</ref> The article said he should have recused himself in cases involving Singer and that he was obligated to disclose certain benefits as gifts on his 2008 Financial Disclosure Report. Legal ethics experts quoted in ''ProPublica'' called Alito's behavior "unacceptable".<ref name="ethics">{{cite news |last=Pengelly |first=Martin |date=June 21, 2023 |title=Samuel Alito did not declare gifts from billionaire with case before US supreme court |url=https://www.theguardian.com/law/2023/jun/21/samuel-alito-undisclosed-gifts-billionaire-paul-singer-supreme-court |access-date=June 21, 2023 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref>

Shortly before publication of the ''ProPublica'' article, Alito published an [[op-ed]] in ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' challenging the article's assertions and claiming that the source "misleads its readers".<ref name="Alito-2023">{{Cite news |last=Alito |first=Samuel A. Jr. |date=June 20, 2023 |title=Opinion {{!}} Justice Samuel Alito: ProPublica Misleads Its Readers |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/propublica-misleads-its-readers-alito-gifts-disclosure-alaska-singer-23b51eda |access-date=June 21, 2023 |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |language=en-US |issn=0099-9660}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Bazail-Eimil |first1=Eric |last2=Berg |first2=Matt |date=June 21, 2023 |title=Justice Samuel Alito faces scrutiny over trips with GOP donor, pens defensive op-ed |url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/justice-samuel-alito-faces-scrutiny-over-trips-with-gop-donor-pens-defensive-op-ed/ar-AA1cQuI1 |access-date=June 21, 2023 |website=[[Politico]]}}</ref> His preemptory challenge maintained that ''ProPublica''<nowiki/>'s charges were invalid.<ref name="ProP" /> Alito further contended that because of an exemption in the Court's reporting rules for "personal hospitality", he was not required to disclose private air transport for social trips.<ref name="Alito-2023" /> His unconventional decision to bypass reporters' questions and preempt the story via a separate publication took ''ProPublica''<nowiki/>'s reporters by surprise.<ref name="Engelberg">{{Cite web |first1=Jesse |last1=Eisinger |first2=Stephen |last2=Engelberg |date=2023-06-25 |title=Behind the Scenes of Justice Alito's Unprecedented Wall Street Journal Pre-buttal |url=https://www.propublica.org/article/behind-scenes-alito-wall-street-journal-prebuttal-editorial |access-date=2023-06-27 |website=[[ProPublica]] |language=en}}</ref> The decision to publish the op-ed was criticized both within the ''Wall Street Journal'' and by media critics, in part because it lacked fact-checking.<ref name="Engelberg" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Robertson |first=Katie |date=2023-06-21 |title=Alito's Reply in a Rival Publication Surprises ProPublica |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/21/business/media/alito-propublica-wall-street-journal.html |access-date=2023-06-27 |work=[[The New York Times]] |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

The ''ProPublica'' report on unreported gifts to both Alito and Thomas led several members of Congress to call for ethics reform for the Supreme Court. This included a Senate Judiciary Committee proposal to establish a code of ethics for the Court.<ref>{{cite news |last=Rimmer |first=Morgan |date=July 20, 2023 |title=Senate Judiciary Committee advances Supreme Court ethics bill on party lines |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/20/politics/supreme-court-ethics-bill-senate-judiciary/index.html |access-date=July 30, 2023 |work=[[CNN]]}}</ref> In a July 2023 ''[[The Wall Street Journal|Wall Street Journal]]'' opinion column, Alito wrote, "Congress did not create the Supreme Court [...] I know this is a controversial view, but I'm willing to say it. No provision in the Constitution gives them the authority to regulate the Supreme Court—period."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Rivkin Jr. |first1=David B. |last2=Taranto |first2=James |date=July 28, 2023 |title=Samuel Alito, the Supreme Court's Plain-Spoken Defender |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/samuel-alito-the-supreme-courts-plain-spoken-defender-precedent-ethics-originalism-5e3e9a7 |access-date=July 30, 2023 |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]}}</ref> This declaration led to further debate among lawmakers. Senator [[Chris Murphy]] said the Constitution gives Congress power to oversee the Court: "It is just wrong on the facts to say that Congress doesn't have anything to do with the rules guiding the Supreme Court. In fact, from the very beginning, Congress has set those rules."<ref>{{cite web |last=LeBlanc |first=Paul |date=July 30, 2023 |title=Democratic senator calls Samuel Alito 'stunningly wrong' on Supreme Court ethics controversy |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/30/politics/chris-murphy-samuel-alito-supreme-court-ethics-cnntv/index.html |access-date=July 30, 2023 |work=[[CNN]]}}</ref>

===Flag display controversy===
[[File:Flag of the United States (upside down).svg|thumb|An [[Flag of the United States#Flying a U.S. flag upside down|upside down U.S. flag]]]]
[[File:An Appeal to Heaven Flag.svg|thumb|right|The Pine Tree Flag]]
On January 17, 2021, an upside-down [[flag of the United States|American flag]] was flown outside Alito's residence in [[Alexandria, Virginia]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kantor |first1=Jodi |title=At Justice Alito's House, a 'Stop the Steal' Symbol on Display |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/16/us/justice-alito-upside-down-flag.html |agency=New York Times |date=May 16, 2024}}</ref> The upside-down flag, traditionally a signal of distress,<ref>{{UnitedStatesCode|4|8}} (United States Flag Code) "The flag should never be displayed with the union down, except as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property."</ref> was displayed by supporters of former president [[Donald Trump]] during the [[January 6 United States Capitol attack|January 6 Capitol attack]] and by members of the [[Stop the Steal]] movement, an [[Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election|attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election]]. In the summer of 2023, the [[Pine Tree Flag]] was flown at Alito's beach house on [[Long Beach Island]] in [[New Jersey]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Another Provocative Flag Was Flown At Another Alito Home |work=The New York Times |date=May 22, 2024 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/22/us/justice-alito-flag-appeal-to-heaven.html |agency=New York Times |last1=Kantor |first1=Jodi |last2=Toler |first2=Aric |last3=Tate |first3=Julie }}</ref> It was one of the flags used during the [[American Revolution]],<ref>{{Cite web|last=Benner|first=Dave|date=April 16, 2017|title=John Locke's Appeal to Heaven: Its Continuing Relevance|url=https://tenthamendmentcenter.com/2017/04/16/john-lockes-appeal-to-heaven-its-continuing-relevance/|access-date=August 27, 2020|website=Tenth Amendment Center|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310102741/https://tenthamendmentcenter.com/2017/04/16/john-lockes-appeal-to-heaven-its-continuing-relevance/|archive-date=March 10, 2021}}</ref> and has been used by [[Christian nationalism|Christian nationalists]]; it was also carried during the Capitol attack.<ref name="Examiner">{{Cite web |last=Knox |first=Brady |date=2024-05-23 |title=What are the flags Alito is under fire for? |url=https://gazette.com/news/wex/what-are-the-flags-alito-is-under-fire-for/article_2b8e993e-34f8-50fc-a7c8-2df36ff84072.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240525165742/https://gazette.com/news/wex/what-are-the-flags-alito-is-under-fire-for/article_2b8e993e-34f8-50fc-a7c8-2df36ff84072.html |archive-date=May 25, 2024 |access-date=2024-05-28 |language=en-US |newspaper=[[Colorado Springs Gazette]]}}</ref><ref name="Hahner-2024">{{Cite web |last1=Hahner |first1=Leslie |last2=Varda |first2=Scott J. |date=2024-05-30 |title=Outside Supreme Court justice's home, a Revolution-era flag, now a call for Christian nationalism |url=http://theconversation.com/outside-supreme-court-justices-home-a-revolution-era-flag-now-a-call-for-christian-nationalism-231142 |access-date=2024-06-16 |website=The Conversation |language=en-US}}</ref> The flag displays, reported by ''[[The New York Times]]'', caused controversy, including questions about judicial impartiality. During the flag's presence, the Supreme Court was considering the appeal in ''[[Fischer v. United States (2024)|United States v. Fischer]]'' (2023), a case involving the January 6 Capitol attack.<ref name="The New York Times">{{Cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/22/us/justice-alito-flag-appeal-to-heaven.html |title=Another Provocative Flag Was Flown at Another Alito Home |date=May 22, 2024 |last1=Kantor |first1=Jodi |last2=Toler |first2=Aric |last3=Tate |first3=Julie |author-link1=Jodi Kantor |work=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=May 26, 2024}}</ref>

A secret recording by [[Advocacy journalism|advocacy journalist]] [[Lauren Windsor]] captured Martha-Ann Alito discussing the event in June 2024. Martha-Ann Alito said, "I want a [[Sacred Heart|Sacred Heart of Jesus]] flag because I have to look across the lagoon at the [[Pride flag]] for the next month", adding that she would be "changing the flags" when her husband was "free of this nonsense" and that she would come with her own flag, which would be white with yellow and orange flames and read "vergogna" ("shame" in Italian). She also told Windsor that she would "get" "the media", adding: "Look at me. Look at me. I'm German, from Germany. My heritage is German. You come after me, I'm going to give it back to you".<ref name="nyt-vansickle-24">{{cite news |last1=VanSickle |first1=Abbie |date=June 10, 2024 |title=Justice Alito's Wife, in Secretly Recorded Conversation, Complains About Pride Flag |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/10/us/politics/alito-pride-flag.html |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>

Reactions were mixed, with most Democrats condemning Alito and most Republicans defending him. [[United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary|Senate Committee on the Judiciary]] chairman [[Dick Durbin]] requested Alito's recusal from cases involving the January 6 Capitol attack or the [[2020 United States presidential election|2020 presidential election]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Weaver |first=Al |date=May 17, 2024 |title=Durbin calls for Alito recusal from Jan. 6 cases over upside-down flag that flew at his home |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4670536-durbin-calls-for-alito-recusal-from-jan-6-cases-over-upside-down-flag-flew-at-his-home/ |access-date=May 22, 2024 |work=[[The Hill (magazine)|The Hill]]}}</ref> [[United States House Committee on the Judiciary|House Committee on the Judiciary]] member [[Steve Cohen (politician)|Steve Cohen]] introduced a resolution to censure Alito.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sforza |first=Lauren |date=22 May 2024 |title=Democrat introduces Alito censure resolution over upside-down flag |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/4679261-democrat-steve-cohen-introduces-justice-samuel-alito-censure-resolution-over-upside-down-flag/ |access-date=May 22, 2024 |work=[[The Hill (magazine)|The Hill]]}}</ref> Forty-five representatives, joined by ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee [[Hank Johnson]], signed a letter requesting Alito's recusal.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Jouvenal |first1=Justin |last2=Marimow |first2=Ann |date=May 21, 2024 |title=House Democrats call on Justice Alito to recuse after flag controversy |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/05/21/alito-wife-flag-recuse-clarence-thomas/ |access-date=May 22, 2024 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref> Senator [[Tom Cotton]] called the controversy an intimidation attempt,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Whitehurst |first=Lindsay |date=May 17, 2024 |title=Justice Alito's home flew a US flag upside down after Trump's 'Stop the Steal' claims, a report says |url=https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-flag-stop-steal-alito-trump-9a32d658f5c5baa2bacba25bce7c48cd |access-date=May 22, 2024 |publisher=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> while Senator [[Lindsey Graham]] said hoisting the upside-down flag was "not good judgment".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Timotija |first=Filip |date=21 May 2024 |title=Graham on upside-down flag at Alito home: 'Not good judgment' |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4676700-lindsey-graham-says-upside-down-flag-at-alito-home-not-good-judgement/ |access-date=May 22, 2024 |work=[[The Hill (magazine)|The Hill]]}}</ref>

Alito responded that he had no involvement in hoisting either flag, saying: "I was not even aware of the upside-down flag until it was called to my attention" and "My wife is fond of flying flags. I am not".<ref name="Letter from Justice Alito to Senators Durbin and Whitehouse">{{Cite web |last1=Alito |first1=Samuel |date=May 29, 2024 |title=Letter from Justice Alito to Senators Durbin and Whitehouse |url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Letter_from_Justice_Alito_to_Senators_Durbin_and_Whitehouse.pdf |publisher=Supreme Court of the United States}}</ref> In an interview with [[Fox News]], he reiterated that the flag was flown in response to a dispute with a neighbor,<ref name="USATodayInfoAlexandria">{{Cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/05/17/justice-alito-upside-down-flag-outside-house/73730575007/ |title=Alito and the upside down flag: What the symbol means to 'stop the steal' crowd |date=May 17, 2024 |last=Groppe |first=Maureen |work=[[USA Today]] |access-date=May 22, 2024}}</ref> clarifying that his wife was upset about a "Fuck Trump" sign. He told Fox News host [[Shannon Bream]] that the neighbor blamed him for the [[January 6 United States Capitol attack|January 6 Capitol attack]] and called his wife a "[[cunt]]".<ref name="TNRDoubt">{{Cite magazine |url=https://newrepublic.com/post/181725/samuel-alito-upside-down-flag-explanation |title=Samuel Alito Can't Even Lie Properly About That Upside-Down Flag |date=May 17, 2024 |last=Jane |first=Talia |magazine=[[The New Republic]] |access-date=May 22, 2024}}</ref>

Senior U.S. District Judge [[Michael Ponsor]] of Massachusetts called Alito's flag-flying "improper" in an essay published in ''The New York Times''.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Thomsen |first=Jacqueline |date=December 17, 2024 |title=Judge Apologizes for Criticizing Alito's Ethics Over Flags |url=https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/judge-apologizes-for-criticizing-alitos-ethics-over-flags |access-date=December 19, 2024 |work=[[Bloomberg Law]]}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Bravin |first=Jesse |date=December 17, 2024 |title=Judge Broke Rules by Criticizing Justice Alito During Flag Flap |url=https://www.wsj.com/us-news/law/judge-broke-rules-by-criticizing-justice-alito-during-flag-flap-784405fb |access-date=December 19, 2024 |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]}}</ref> Ponsor later apologized after Chief Judge [[Albert Diaz (judge)|Albert Diaz]] of the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit|U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit]] found that his remarks hurt public confidence in the courts by taking issue with Alito's ethics.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />

==Bibliography==
*''Foreword'', 1 SETON HALL CIR. REV. 1 (2005).
*Panel Speaker at the Federalist Society's 2000 National Lawyers Convention: Presidential Oversight and the Administrative State, in 2 ENGAGE (Federalist Soc'y, Wash. D.C.) 11 (2001).
*[https://fedsoc.org/commentary/publications/the-role-of-the-lawyer-in-the-criminal-justice-system ''The Role of the Lawyer in the Criminal Justice System''], 2 FEDERALIST SOC'Y CRIM. L. NEWS (Federalist Soc'y, Wash., D.C.) 3 (1998)
*''Change in Continuity at the Office of Legal Counsel'', 15 CARDOZO L. REV. 507 (1993).
*''Reviewing the Sentencing Commission's 1991 Annual Report'', 5 FED. SENT. REP. 166 (1992).
*''The First Amendment: Information, Publication and the Media'', 1 SETON HALL CONST. L.J. 327 (1991).
*''What Role Should Individual Sentencing Judges Play in the Guideline Development Process?'', 1 FED SENT. REP. 372 (1989).
*''Racketeering Made Simple(r)'', in THE RICO RACKET 1 (Gary L. McDowell ed. 1989).
*''Introduction to After the Independent Counsel Decision: Is Separation of Powers Dead?'', 26 AM. CRIM. L. REV. 1667 (1989).
*''Shift Won't Hamper Crime Fight'', DAILY J. (Vineland, N.J.), May 5, 1989.
*''The Year Wasn't So Bad'', NAT'L. L.J., September 26, 1998, at 12.
*''Documents and the Privilege Against Self-Incrimination'', 48 U. PITT. L. REV. 27 (1986).
*''Equal Protection and Classification Based on Family Membership'', 80 DICK. L. REV. 410 (1976).
*{{cite web |url=http://heinonline.org/HOL/Page?handle=hein.journals%2Fylr83&id=1214&collection=journals&index=journals%2Fylr |title=''The "Released Time" Cases Revisited: A Study of Group Decisionmaking by the Supreme Court'' |work=83 YALE L.J. 1202 |date=1974 |archive-url=https://perma.cc/3D2A-JL8X |archive-date=22 February 2015 }}{{cbignore}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20051128160011/http://www.princeton.edu/~mudd/news/Alito_thesis.pdf ''An Introduction to the Italian Constitutional Court''] (A.B. Thesis, Princeton University, Woodrow Wilson School Scholar Project, May 31, 1972).

===Related documents===
*[https://www.archives.gov/news/samuel-alito/accession-060-89-216/MemphisPol-v-Garner-1984-box19-memoAlitotoSolicitorGeneral.pdf Legal Memo] written while working in the [[United States Solicitor General]]'s office regarding the [[Fleeing felon rule]]. (May 18, 1984) (PDF)
*[http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/alito/111585stmnt.html 'Personal Qualifications Statement'] when applying to be an Assistant Attorney General under Pres. Ronald Reagan. (November 15, 1985)
*[http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/alito/carley86mem.pdf Legal Memo written as Deputy Asst. Attorney General to the OMB's General Counsel regarding OMB authority of FDIC funds.] (1986) (PDF)
*[http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/alito/hjud62702hrng.pdf House Committee on the Judiciary testimony regarding unpublished court opinions.] (1990) (PDF)
*[http://news.findlaw.com/cnn/docs/alito/2003fdr.pdf 2003 Financial Disclosure]
*[http://news.findlaw.com/cnn/docs/alito/2004fdr.pdf 2004 Financial Disclosure]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20051202023827/http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/interactive/us/0511/alito.questionnaire/SAA.Questionnaire.pdf Response to a Senate Judiciary Committee questionnaire] (November 30, 2005) (PDF), ([https://web.archive.org/web/20060216075757/http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/interactive/us/0511/alito.questionnaire/appx.1.13d.pdf Appendix1] [https://web.archive.org/web/20060216075803/http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/interactive/us/0511/alito.questionnaire/appx.2.14b.pdf Appendix2] [https://web.archive.org/web/20060216075741/http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/interactive/us/0511/alito.questionnaire/appx.3.17.pdf Appendix3] [https://web.archive.org/web/20060216075813/http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/interactive/us/0511/alito.questionnaire/appx.4.23c.pdf Appendix4])
*[https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Letter_from_Justice_Alito_to_Senators_Durbin_and_Whitehouse.pdf Letter from Justice Alito to Senators Durbin and Whitehouse] (2024)

==See also==
{{portal|Conservatism}}
{{colbegin}}
*[[Judicial restraint]]
*[[List of justices of the Supreme Court of the United States]]
*[[List of law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States (Seat 8)]]
*[[List of United States Supreme Court justices by time in office]]
*[[Unitary executive theory]]
*[[List of United States Supreme Court cases by the Roberts Court|United States Supreme Court cases during the Roberts Court]]
{{colend}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
<!-- How to add a footnote:
   NOTE: Footnotes in this article use names, not numbers. Please see [[Wikipedia:Footnotes]] for details.
     1) Assign your footnote a unique name, for example TheSun_Dec9.
     2) Add the macro {{ref|TheSun_Dec9}} to the body of the article, where you want the new footnote.
     3) Take note of the name of the footnote that immediately precedes yours in the article body.
     4) Add #{{Note|TheSun_Dec9}} to the list, immediately below the footnote you noted in step 3. No need to re-number anything!
     5) Multiple footnotes to the same reference: see [[Wikipedia:Footnotes]] for a how-to.
   NOTE: It is important to add footnotes in the right order in the list!
-->
<!-- (NO MATCHING REF) #{{note|coffee}} "[http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/12042659.htm The appeals court judge is a contender]", ''[[Philadelphia Inquirer]]'', July 3, 2005 -->
<!-- (NO MATCHING REF) #{{note|federalist}} "[http://www.nbcnews.com/id/9875670 Alito's conservatism gives Senate clear choice]{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}", ''[[MSNBC.com]]'', October 31, 2005 -->
<!-- (NO MATCHING REF) #{{note|CAP}} "[http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/archives/2005/11/18/news/13876.shtml Alito joined conservative alumni group]", ''[[Daily Princetonian]]'', November 18, 2005 -->
<!-- (NO MATCHING REF) #{{note|CAP}} "[http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/archives/2005/11/22/opinion/] -->
{{reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last1=Avery |first1=M. |last2=McLaughlin |first2=D. |year=2021 |title=The Federalist Society: How Conservatives Took the Law Back from Liberals |publisher=Vanderbilt University Press |isbn=978-0-8265-0339-8 }}
* {{Cite magazine |last=Bazelon |first=Emily |date=October 31, 2005 |title=Alito v. O'Connor |url=http://www.slate.com/id/2129096/nav/tap1/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511063923/http://www.slate.com/id/2129096/nav/tap1/ |archive-date=May 11, 2011 |magazine=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]}}
* {{Cite news |date=2005-10-31 |title=Bush choice sets up court battle |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4392540.stm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060316202221/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4392540.stm |archive-date=2006-03-16 |work=[[BBC]]}}
* {{Cite web |last1=Collins |first1=Ronald K.L. |last2=Hudson |first2=David L. Jr. |date=October 31, 2005 |title=Judge Alito: fairly strong on free expression |url=http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/analysis.aspx?id=16003 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060220163058/http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/analysis.aspx?id=16003 |archive-date=2006-02-20 |website=[[First Amendment Center]]}}
* {{Cite web |last=Collins |first=Ronald K.L. |date=November 3, 2005 |title=Alito as government lawyer: '84 broadcast-regulation case |url=http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/analysis.aspx?id=16018 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20060324015418/http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/analysis.aspx?id=16018 |archive-date=2006-03-24 |website=[[First Amendment Center]]}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Davis |first=Elliott M. |date=Summer 2007 |title=The Newer Textualism: Justice Alito's Statutory Interpretation |url=http://www.law.harvard.edu/students/orgs/jlpp/Vol30_No3_Davisonline.pdf |journal=Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy |volume=30 |issue=3 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160928235942/http://www.law.harvard.edu/students/orgs/jlpp/Vol30_No3_Davisonline.pdf |archive-date=2016-09-28}}
* {{Cite magazine |last=Dickerson |first=John |date=October 31, 2005 |title=Ready To Rumble |url=http://www.slate.com/id/2129101/nav/tap1/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110217190031/http://www.slate.com/id/2129101/nav/tap1/ |archive-date=February 17, 2011 |magazine=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]}}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Gibson |first1=James L. |last2=Caldeira |first2=Gregory A. |year=2009 |title=Confirmation politics and the legitimacy of the US Supreme Court: Institutional loyalty, positivity bias, and the Alito nomination |url=https://pages.wustl.edu/files/pages/imce/jlgibson/ajps2009.pdf |journal=American Journal of Political Science |volume=53 |issue=1 |pages=139–155 |doi=10.1111/j.1540-5907.2008.00362.x |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024235739/https://pages.wustl.edu/files/pages/imce/jlgibson/ajps2009.pdf |archive-date=October 24, 2020}}
* {{Cite news |last=Hook |first=Janet |date=November 1, 2005 |title=Bush's Supreme Court Nominee: A Phillies Fan With Blue-Chip Legal Stats |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-nov-01-na-profile1-story.html |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |page=A1}}
* {{Cite web |title=Judges of the United States |url=http://air.fjc.gov/servlet/tGetInfo?jid=26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070109145353/http://air.fjc.gov/servlet/tGetInfo?jid=26 |archive-date=January 9, 2007 |website=Federal Judicial Center}} (official curriculum vitae).
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{sister project links|Samuel Alito}}
* {{FJC Bio|26|nid=1377101|name=Samuel A. Alito Jr.<!--(1950–)-->}}
* {{Ballotpedia|Samuel_Alito}}
* {{C-SPAN|1017027}}
* [https://www.oyez.org/advocates/samuel_a_alito_jr Appearances at the U.S. Supreme Court] from the [[Oyez Project]]
* [https://www.loc.gov/law/find/alito.php The Nomination of Samuel A. Alito] at the [[Law Library of Congress]]
* [https://www.thirteen.org/wnet/supremecourt/future/robes_alito.html Fox, John, ''Capitalism and Conflict, Biographies of the Robes, Samuel Anthony Alito, Jr.''] [[Public Broadcasting Service]].
* [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/31/AR2005103100227.html ''Washington Post'' Profile]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060207033836/http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/archives/2005/10/28/news/13656.shtml Daily Princetonian profile]
* [http://www.OnTheIssues.org/Samuel_Alito.htm Issue positions and quotes] at [[OnTheIssues]]
* [http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Samuel_A._Alito%2C_Jr. Profile] at [[SourceWatch]]
* [http://media.pfaw.org/stc/AlitoPreliminary.pdf "The Record of Samuel Alito: A Preliminary Review"]. [[People For the American Way]]. 2005.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071118070649/http://digital.library.unt.edu/govdocs/crs/search.tkl?q=alito&search_crit=title&search=Search&date1=Anytime&date2=Anytime&type=form Read Congressional Research Service (CRS) Reports regarding Alito]
* [https://www.jurist.org/?s=alito Alito] at Jurist.org
* [https://www.archives.gov/news/samuel-alito/ National Archives Alito links]
* [https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/infocus/judicialnominees/alito.html The White House Judicial Nominations page on Alito]
* [http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/GPO-CHRG-ALITO/pdf/GPO-CHRG-ALITO.pdf Supreme Court Justice Nomination Hearings on Samuel Anthony Alito, Jr. in January 2006] United States Government Publishing Office

{{s-start}}
{{s-legal}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Thomas W. Greelish|Thomas Grenlish]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey]]|years=1987–1990}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Michael Chertoff]]}}
|-
{{s-bef|before=[[John Joseph Gibbons|John Gibbons]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=Judge of the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit|United States Court of Appeals <br /> for the Third Circuit]]|years=1990–2006}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Joseph A. Greenaway Jr.|Joseph Greenaway]]}}
|-
{{s-bef|before=[[Sandra Day O'Connor]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States]]|years=2006–present}}
{{s-inc}}
|-
{{s-prec|usa}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Clarence Thomas]]|as=Associate Justice of the Supreme Court}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[United States order of precedence|Order of precedence of the United States]]<br />''as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court''|years=}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Sonia Sotomayor]]|as=Associate Justice of the Supreme Court}}
{{s-end}}

{{SCOTUS Justices}}
{{Samuel Alito opinions}}
{{USAttNJ}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alito, Samuel}}
[[Category:1950 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century Roman Catholics]]
[[Category:21st-century American judges]]
[[Category:21st-century Roman Catholics]]
[[Category:2021 controversies in the United States]]
[[Category:2023 controversies in the United States]]
[[Category:American people of Italian descent]]
[[Category:Assistant United States attorneys]]
[[Category:Catholics from New Jersey]]
[[Category:Competitive debaters]]
[[Category:Duke University School of Law faculty]]
[[Category:Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit]]
[[Category:Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States]]
[[Category:Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic]]
[[Category:People from Hamilton Township, Mercer County, New Jersey]]
[[Category:People from Trenton, New Jersey]]
[[Category:People from West Caldwell, New Jersey]]
[[Category:People of Calabrian descent]]
[[Category:Princeton School of Public and International Affairs alumni]]
[[Category:Reagan administration personnel]]
[[Category:Seton Hall University School of Law faculty]]
[[Category:Steinert High School alumni]]
[[Category:United States Army officers]]
[[Category:United States attorneys for the District of New Jersey]]
[[Category:United States court of appeals judges appointed by George H. W. Bush]]
[[Category:United States federal judges appointed by George W. Bush]]
[[Category:Yale Law School alumni]]