Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch voiced concerns Sunday about ongoing leaks from the nation’s highest court, emphasizing that justices require space for honest deliberations away from public scrutiny.
During an appearance on Fox News Sunday, the conservative justice addressed recent unauthorized disclosures of internal court documents, including memos leaked to The New York Times last month regarding a 2016 decision that blocked former President Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan.
“We want some transparency, but we also have to leave room for candid conversations and deliberations with one another,” said Gorsuch, who joined the court in 2017 after being nominated by former President Donald Trump.
The justice acknowledged the court provides transparency through publicly available audio recordings of oral arguments, but stressed the importance of private discussions among the nine members.
“But do we need time to actually talk quietly with one another, to find those places where we can reach agreement? Yeah, we do,” Gorsuch explained.
The leaked documents published by The New York Times focused on the court’s emergency docket, sometimes referred to as the “shadow” docket, which has been used frequently to grant quick rulings while cases proceed through lower courts.
The most significant leak in recent memory occurred in 2022 when Politico obtained and published a draft opinion weeks before the court officially released its decision overturning Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that had established nationwide abortion rights.
When asked about how leaks affect public trust in the institution, Gorsuch pointed to the court’s published opinions as the definitive record of justices’ reasoning.
“Everything that I think about a case is there, on the printed page for anybody to read if they so choose,” he stated.
Unlike the court’s regular cases, which include detailed written opinions after months of deliberation, emergency docket decisions often come quickly with minimal explanation.
Gorsuch made these remarks while promoting his upcoming children’s book titled “Heroes of 1776: The Story of the Declaration of Independence,” which will be released Tuesday in conjunction with upcoming celebrations marking 250 years of American independence.
The conservative majority on the court, which includes Gorsuch, continues to shift American jurisprudence rightward. Just last week, the conservative justices weakened a crucial section of the Voting Rights Act, making it more difficult for minority groups to challenge electoral districts they believe are racially discriminatory.
