Nominated by Barack Obama
Elena Kagan
Associate Justice since Aug 7, 2010
Circuits:Ninth Circuit
Born
Apr 28, 1960
Birthplace
New York, New York
Took seat
Aug 7, 2010
Authored opinions
64
Majority votes
108
Recusals
0
Biography
was born in New York, New York, on April 28, 1960. She received an A.B. from Princeton in 1981, an M. Phil. from Oxford in 1983, and a J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1986. She clerked for Judge Abner Mikva of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit from 1986-1987 and for Justice Thurgood Marshall of the U.S. Supreme Court during the 1987 Term. After briefly practicing law at a Washington, D.C. law firm, she became a law professor, first at the University of Chicago Law School and later at Harvard Law School. She also served for four years in the Clinton Administration, as Associate Counsel to the President and then as Deputy Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy. Between 2003 and 2009, she served as the Dean of Harvard Law School. In 2009, President Obama nominated her as the Solicitor General of the United States. A year later, the President nominated her as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court on May 10, 2010. She took her seat on August 7, 2010.
Oral argument analytics
How Kagan shows up at oral argument.
Speaking time
4h 16m
October Term 2025 · Rank #3
Questions asked
440
7.5/case · 59 cases
Speaking pace
174 wpm
44,468 total words
Engagement
418
interruptions · 0 first questioner
Term-by-term
| Term | Time | Questions | WPM | Cases | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October Term 2025 | 4h 16m | 440 | 174 | 59 | #3 |
| October Term 2024 | 4h 36m | 493 | 175 | 60 | #3 |
Recent oral argument activity
Notable quotes and analysis from recent arguments.
“If you were wrong about the scope of the misbranding actions, could you still win?”
Petitioner
Authored opinions
ConcurrenceMar 31, 2026
Colorado Conversion-Therapy Ban Invalid as Applied to a Christian Counselor’s Talk Therapy
Opinion of the CourtMar 20, 2026
Whether Heck Bars Prospective §1983 Relief After a Conviction — Olivier v. City of Brandon
Petitioner Gabriel Olivier’s suit seeking purely prospective relief—an injunction stopping officials from enforcing an ordinance in the future—can proceed, notwithstanding his prior conviction for violating that ordinance; Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U. S. 477 (1994), does not hold otherwise.
Opinion of the CourtFeb 25, 2026
Pretrial Denial of Yearsley Defense Is Not Immediately Appealable Under §1291
Recent votes
majorityMar 31, 2026
Colorado Conversion-Therapy Ban Invalid as Applied to a Christian Counselor’s Talk Therapy
dissentJul 1, 2021
Narrows Federal Review of Arizona Voting Rules in Brnovich v. DNC
dissentJul 1, 2021
Limits Use of Voting Rights Act to Force New Voting Practices in Arizona Case
dissentJul 1, 2021
Limits California's Demand That Charities Disclose Major Donors' Names
dissentJul 1, 2021