The Henry J. Friendly Medal is an award given periodically by the American Law Institute (ALI) in recognition of outstanding contributions to the field of law. [1] [2] It is named in honor of Judge Henry Friendly of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. [3] [4] The medal is conferred to an individual for their contributions "in the tradition of Judge Friendly." [5]
The award is reserved to some of the most influential modern jurists, including Judge Merrick Garland, and U.S. Supreme Court Justices Anthony Kennedy, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and John Roberts. [6] It is the most prestigious award given by the ALI. [7]
The Friendly Medal was established by Judge Friendly's former law clerks after his death. [8] Friendly had been a member of the American Law Institute's council. [9] The medal initially featured a likeness of Friendly smiling, but was changed as the judge rarely smiled. [10] It is given by the American Law Institute Awards Committee. [8]
The medal is only awarded as appropriate and not on an annual basis. [11] The award has been described as "prestigious" and "reserved for recipients who are considered especially worthy of receiving it." [12] It is one of the highest honors given by the ALI, [13] and is not limited to the organization's members. [14] In 1992, Judge Michael Boudin of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit was the chair of the awarding committee. [15] After it was established, Edward Weinfeld, a close friend of Judge Friendly, traveled in person to be the first to receive the award before dying a day later. [16]
Joan Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1993 until her death in 2020. She was nominated by President Bill Clinton to replace retiring justice Byron White, and at the time was viewed as a moderate consensus-builder. Ginsburg was the first Jewish woman and the second woman to serve on the Court, after Sandra Day O'Connor. During her tenure, Ginsburg authored the majority opinions in cases such as United States v. Virginia (1996), Olmstead v. L.C. (1999), Friends of the Earth, Inc. v. Laidlaw Environmental Services, Inc. (2000), and City of Sherrill v. Oneida Indian Nation of New York (2005). Later in her tenure, Ginsburg received attention for passionate dissents that reflected liberal views of the law. She was popularly dubbed "the Notorious R.B.G.", a moniker she later embraced.
Douglas Howard Ginsburg is an American lawyer, jurist, and academic serving as a senior U.S. circuit judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. He is also a professor of law at George Mason University's Antonin Scalia Law School.
Merrick Brian Garland is an American lawyer and jurist who serves as the 86th United States attorney general. He previously served as a U.S. circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 1997 to 2021. In 2016, President Barack Obama nominated Garland to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the Republican-led U.S. Senate effectively blocked Garland's appointment.
Elena Kagan is an American lawyer who serves as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. She was appointed in 2010 by President Barack Obama and is the fourth woman to serve on the Court.
Henry Jacob Friendly was an American jurist who served as a federal circuit judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit from 1959 until his death in 1986. Friendly was one of the most prominent U.S. judges of the 20th century, and his opinions are some of the most-cited in federal jurisprudence.
Consuelo María Callahan is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Thomas Che Goldstein is an American lawyer. He is known for his advocacy before and blog about the Supreme Court of the United States. He was a founding partner of Goldstein and Howe, a Washington, D.C., firm specializing in Supreme Court litigation, and was, until the end of 2010, a partner at Akin Gump, where he was co-head of the litigation and Supreme Court practices. He retired from Goldstein & Russell in March 2023.
Norman Dorsen was the Frederick I. and Grace A. Stokes Professor of Law and Co-Director of the Arthur Garfield Hays Civil Liberties Program at the New York University School of Law, where he specialized in Constitutional Law, Civil Liberties, and Comparative Constitutional Law. Previously, he was president of the American Civil Liberties Union, 1976–1991. He was also president of the Society of American Law Teachers, 1972–1973, and president of the U.S. Association of Constitutional Law in 2000.
The Brandeis Medal is awarded to individuals whose lives reflect United States Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis' commitment to the ideals of individual liberty, concern for the disadvantaged and public service.
The Roberts Court is the time since 2005 during which the Supreme Court of the United States has been led by John Roberts as Chief Justice. Roberts succeeded William Rehnquist as Chief Justice after Rehnquist's death.
Robert Allen Katzmann was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. He served as chief judge from September 1, 2013, to August 31, 2020.
President Barack Obama made two successful appointments to the Supreme Court of the United States. The first was Judge Sonia Sotomayor to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice David H. Souter. Sotomayor was confirmed by the United States Senate on August 6, 2009, by a vote of 68–31. The second appointment was that of Solicitor General Elena Kagan to replace the retired John Paul Stevens. Kagan was confirmed by the Senate on August 5, 2010, by a vote of 63–37.
Patricia Ann Millett is an American lawyer and jurist serving since 2013 as a U.S. circuit judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. She formerly headed the Supreme Court practice at the law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld. Millett also was a longtime former assistant to the United States Solicitor General and served as an occasional blogger for SCOTUSblog. At the time of her confirmation to the D.C. Circuit, she had argued 32 cases before the United States Supreme Court. In February 2016 The New York Times identified her as a potential nominee to replace Justice Antonin Scalia.
Ketanji Onyika Brown Jackson is an American lawyer and jurist who is an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Jackson was nominated to the Supreme Court by President Joe Biden on February 25, 2022, and confirmed by the U.S. Senate and sworn into office that same year. She is the first black woman and the first former federal public defender to serve on the Supreme Court. From 2021 to 2022, Jackson was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
On March 16, 2016, President Barack Obama nominated Merrick Garland for Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States to succeed Antonin Scalia, who had died one month earlier. At the time of his nomination, Garland was the chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
Amy Vivian Coney Barrett is an American lawyer and jurist who serves as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. The fifth woman to serve on the court, she was nominated by President Donald Trump and has served since October 27, 2020. Barrett was a U.S. circuit judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit from 2017 to 2020.
Sessions v. Dimaya, 584 U.S. 148 (2018), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that 18 U.S.C. § 16(b), a statute defining certain "aggravated felonies" for immigration purposes, is unconstitutionally vague. The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) classifies some categories of crimes as "aggravated felonies", and immigrants convicted of those crimes, including those legally present in the United States, are almost certain to be deported. Those categories include "crimes of violence", which are defined by the "elements clause" and the "residual clause". The Court struck down the "residual clause", which classified every felony that, "by its nature, involves a substantial risk" of "physical force against the person or property" as an aggravated felony.
Thryv, Inc. v. Click-to-Call Technologies, LP, 140 S. Ct. 1367, was a 2020 decision by the United States Supreme Court regarding whether inter partes review institution decisions by the United States Patent and Trademark Office were subject to judicial review. Writing for the majority, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg issued an opinion finding that such decisions were not judicially reviewable. Justices Neil Gorsuch and Sonia Sotomayor dissented from the majority's ruling, arguing that neither Congress or the Constitution authorized a lack of judicial review of such decisions.
Brian Fletcher is an American lawyer who serves as the Principal Deputy Solicitor General of the United States. He served as Acting Solicitor General from August 11, 2021, until Elizabeth Prelogar's confirmation on October 21, 2021.
Gregory Kenneth Palm is an American lawyer and businessman. He was the executive vice president of Goldman Sachs. In 2019, Palm retired from Goldman Sachs as its general counsel and took a role as its senior advisor. Bloomberg valued his net worth at more than $500 million in 2019. From shares, distributions, and dividends from Goldman Sachs, he is one of the wealthiest corporate lawyers in the United States.
