David Souter

{{Infobox officeholder

| name = David Souter

| image = DavidSouter.jpg

| caption = Official portrait, 1990

| office = Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States

| nominator = George H. W. Bush

| term_start = October 9, 1990

| term_end = June 29, 2009

| predecessor = William J. Brennan Jr.

| successor = Sonia Sotomayor

| office1 = Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit

| nominator1 = George H. W. Bush

| term_start1 = May 25, 1990

| term_end1 = October 9, 1990

| predecessor1 = Hugh H. Bownes

| successor1 = Norman H. Stahl

| office2 = Associate Justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court

| nominator2 = John Sununu

| term_start2 = 1983

| term_end2 = 1990

| predecessor2 = Maurice Bois

| successor2 = Sherman Horton

| order4 = 20th

| office4 = Attorney General of New Hampshire

| governor4 = Meldrim Thomson Jr.

| term_start4 = July 17, 1976

| term_end4 = September 19, 1978

| predecessor4 = Warren Rudman

| successor4 = Thomas D. Rath

| birth_name = David Hackett Souter

| birth_date = {{birth date|1939|09|17}}

| birth_place = {{nowrap|Melrose, Massachusetts, U.S.}}

| death_date = {{death date and age|2025|05|08|1939|09|17}}

| death_place = Hopkinton, New Hampshire, U.S.

| party = Republican{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/11/AR2008021102753.html |title=As on Bench, Voting Styles Are Personal |first1=Robert |last1=Barnes |first2=Lucy |last2=Shackelford |date=February 12, 2008 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=August 26, 2017 |archive-date=November 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126013018/https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/11/AR2008021102753.html |url-status=live }}

| education = {{Unbulleted list|Harvard University (BA, LLB)|Magdalen College, Oxford (BA)}}

| signature = Souter signature.png

| module = {{Listen voice |filename=David Souter delivers the opinion of the Court in Clark v. Arizona.ogg |title=Souter's voice |description=Souter delivering the Clark v. Arizona majority opinion. |recorded=June 29, 2006}}

}}

David Hackett Souter ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|uː|t|ər}} {{respell|SOO|tər}}; September 17, 1939 – May 8, 2025) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1990 until his retirement in 2009.{{cite web| url=https://www.supremecourt.gov/about/members_text.aspx| title= Justices 1789 to Present| publisher=Supreme Court of the United States| location=Washington, D.C.| access-date=February 15, 2022}}{{cite web |url=https://www.supremecourt.gov/publicinfo/press/pr_05-01-09.html |title=Press Release |date=February 13, 2009 |publisher=Supreme Court of the United States |access-date=June 27, 2017 |archive-date=July 21, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721063046/https://www.supremecourt.gov/publicinfo/press/pr_05-01-09.html |url-status=live }} Appointed by President George H. W. Bush to fill the seat that had been vacated by William J. Brennan Jr., Souter was a member of both the Rehnquist and Roberts courts.

Raised in New England, Souter attended Harvard College; Magdalen College, Oxford; and Harvard Law School. After briefly working in private practice, he moved to public service. He served as a prosecutor in the office of the Attorney General of New Hampshire (1968–1976); as attorney general of New Hampshire (1976–1978); as an associate justice of the New Hampshire Superior Court (1978–1983); as an associate justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court (1983–1990); and as a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (1990).{{cite news |date=August 3, 2017 |title=David H. Souter |url=http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/s/david_h_souter/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906031707/http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/s/david_h_souter/index.html |archive-date=September 6, 2015 |access-date=October 11, 2009 |newspaper=The New York Times}}

In mid-2009, after Barack Obama took office as U.S. president, Souter announced his retirement from the Court; he was succeeded by Sonia Sotomayor. Souter continued to hear cases by designation at the circuit court level.

Early life and education

Souter was born in Melrose, Massachusetts, on September 17, 1939, the only child of Joseph Alexander Souter (1904–1976) and Helen Adams (Hackett) Souter (1907–1995).Yarbrough, Tinsley E. [https://books.google.com/books?id=mvV0cVeWVmUC&q=david+souter+%22home+run%22 "David Hackett Souter: Traditional Republican on the Rehnquist Court"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210505210016/https://books.google.com/books?id=mvV0cVeWVmUC&printsec=frontcover&dq=david+souter+%22home+run%22&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 |date=May 5, 2021 }}, Oxford University Press, 2005, {{ISBN|0-19-515933-0}} [https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/justices/souter.bio.html Biography David Hackett Souter] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210314174822/http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/justices/souter.bio.html |date=March 14, 2021 }}, Cornell University Law School His father was of Scottish ancestry and his mother of English ancestry.{{cite web | url=https://www.geni.com/people/David-Souter-Associate-Justice-of-the-U-S-Supreme-Court/6000000013205057829 | title=David Souter, Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court | date=May 24, 2018 }} At age 11, he moved with his family to their farm in Weare, New Hampshire.

Souter graduated second in his class from Concord High School in 1957.{{cite web|url=http://www.concord.k12.nh.us/alumni/hist/disting/notables.htm |title=CONCORD HIGH SCHOOL NOTABLES |publisher=Concord High School |access-date=December 17, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131221172824/http://www.concord.k12.nh.us/alumni/hist/disting/notables.htm |archive-date=December 21, 2013}} He then attended Harvard University, graduating in 1961 with a Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude, in philosophy and writing a senior thesis on the legal positivism of Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. While at Harvard, Souter was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa.[http://www.pbk.org/userfiles/file/Famous%20Members/PBKSupremeCourtJustices.pdf Supreme Court Justices Who Are Phi Beta Kappa Members] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928082723/http://www.pbk.org/userfiles/file/Famous%20Members/PBKSupremeCourtJustices.pdf |date=September 28, 2011 }}, Phi Beta Kappa website He was selected as a Rhodes Scholar and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree (later promoted to a Master of Arts degree, as per tradition) in Jurisprudence from Magdalen College, Oxford, in 1963. He graduated in 1966 with a Bachelor of Laws degree from Harvard Law School.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/09/us/david-souter-dead.html|title=David H. Souter, Republican Justice Who Allied With Court's Liberal Wing, Dies at 85|work=The New York Times|date=May 9, 2025|accessdate=May 9, 2025}}

Early career

In 1968, after two years as an associate at the law firm of Orr & Reno in Concord, New Hampshire, Souter began his career in public service by accepting a position as an assistant attorney general of New Hampshire. In 1971, Warren Rudman, then the attorney general of New Hampshire, selected Souter as deputy attorney general.{{cite web| url=https://edition.cnn.com/2013/07/26/us/david-souter-fast-facts/index.html| title= David Souter Fast Facts| date= July 26, 2013| publisher=CNN |access-date=October 26, 2024}} Souter succeeded Rudman as New Hampshire attorney general in 1976.

In 1978, Souter was named an associate justice of the New Hampshire Superior Court. With four years of trial court experience, Souter was appointed to the New Hampshire Supreme Court as an associate justice in 1983.{{cite news |last1=Gerstenzang |first1=James |last2=Lauter |first2=David |title=Little-Known Judge Named to Replace Brennan on Court : Judiciary: David Souter served as New Hampshire justice and attorney general. He has no clear record on abortion. |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-07-24-mn-573-story.html |access-date=December 31, 2016 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=July 24, 1990 |archive-date=July 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170708054421/http://articles.latimes.com/1990-07-24/news/mn-573_1_supreme-court-justice |url-status=live}}

Shortly after George H. W. Bush was sworn in as president, he nominated Souter to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Souter had had seven years of judicial experience at the appellate level, four years at the trial court level, and ten years with the attorney general's office. He was confirmed by unanimous consent of the Senate on April 27, 1990.{{cite web|url=https://www.congress.gov/nomination/101st-congress/1016|title=PN1016 - Nomination of David H. Souter for The Judiciary, 101st Congress (1989-1990)|date=April 27, 1990|website=www.congress.gov|access-date=June 27, 2017|archive-date=June 28, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180628015442/https://www.congress.gov/nomination/101st-congress/1016|url-status=live}}

U.S. Supreme Court appointment

File:David Souter at one of his confirmation hearings.jpgPresident George H. W. Bush initially considered nominating Clarence Thomas to Brennan's seat, but he and his advisers decided that Thomas did not yet have enough experience as a judge.Greenberg, Jan Crawford [https://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=3664944&page=1 Clarence Thomas: A Silent Justice Speaks Out] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080919015232/http://www.abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=3664944&page=1 |date=September 19, 2008 }}, ABC News, September 30, 2007 Warren Rudman, who had since been elected to the U.S. Senate, and former Governor of New Hampshire John H. Sununu, then Bush's chief of staff, suggested Souter, and were instrumental in his nomination and confirmation. Bush was reportedly "highly impressed by Souter's intellectual seriousness" and Souter's intellect, "particularly impressive in one-on-one meetings", was reported to have been a persuasive factor in his nomination.{{Cite web |date=July 25, 1990 |title=And Then There Were 2 and Finally 1--Souter : Court: Nominee selected over Texas woman primarily for his lack of 'paper trail' on controversial issues. |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-07-25-mn-972-story.html |access-date=July 3, 2022 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}} At the time, few observers outside New Hampshire knew who Souter was,Greenhouse, Linda [https://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/03/news/souter-anchoring-the-court-s-new-center.html Souter Anchoring the Court's New Center] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170508115350/http://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/03/news/souter-anchoring-the-court-s-new-center.html |date=May 8, 2017 }}, The New York Times, July 3, 1992 although he had reportedly been on Reagan's short list of nominees for the Supreme Court seat held by Lewis F. Powell Jr. that eventually went to Anthony Kennedy.{{Cite news |last1=Greenhouse |first1=Linda |date=October 29, 1987 |title=A New Contender Is Seen for Court |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/10/29/us/a-new-contender-is-seen-for-court.html |access-date=July 4, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}

Souter was seen as a "stealth justice" whose professional record in the state courts provoked no real controversy and provided a minimal "paper trail"Rosen, Jeffrey [https://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/02/opinion/02rosen.html "Stealth Justice"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161207152532/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/02/opinion/02rosen.html |date=December 7, 2016}}, The New York Times, May 1, 2009 on issues of U.S. Constitutional law. Bush saw the lack of a paper trail as an asset, because the Senate had rejected one of President Reagan's nominees, Robert Bork, partially because of his extensive written opinions on controversial issues.{{Cite web|url=https://politi.co/2m3B3oX|title=The Justice Who Built the Trump Court|last=Greenfield|first=Jeff|website=POLITICO Magazine|date=July 9, 2018 |language=en|access-date=October 18, 2019|archive-date=November 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108151028/https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/07/09/david-souter-the-supreme-court-justice-who-built-the-trump-court-218953/|url-status=live}} Bush nominated Souter on July 25, 1990, saying that he did not know Souter's stances on abortion, affirmative action, or other issues.[http://uspolitics.about.com/od/usgovernment/a/supreme_court_3.htm US Supreme Court] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051128170158/http://uspolitics.about.com/od/usgovernment/a/supreme_court_3.htm |date=November 28, 2005 }}, about.com

Senate confirmation hearings began on September 13, 1990. The National Organization for Women opposed Souter's nomination and held a rally outside the Senate during the hearings. The president of NOW, Molly Yard, testified that Souter would "end freedom for women in this country."Kamen, Al [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/18/AR2005091801188.html For Liberals, Easy Does It With Roberts] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161130055328/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/18/AR2005091801188.html |date=November 30, 2016 }}, The Washington Post, September 19, 2005 Souter was also opposed by the NAACP, which urged its 500,000 members to write letters to their senators asking them to oppose the nomination.Molotsky, Irvin [https://www.nytimes.com/1990/09/22/us/naacp-urges-souter-s-defeat-citing-earlier-statements-on-race.html N.A.A.C.P. Urges Souter's Defeat, Citing Earlier Statements on Race] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170205065151/http://www.nytimes.com/1990/09/22/us/naacp-urges-souter-s-defeat-citing-earlier-statements-on-race.html |date=February 5, 2017 }}, The New York Times, September 22, 1990 In Souter's opening statement before the Judiciary Committee, he summed up the lessons he had learned as a judge of the New Hampshire courts:

{{blockquote|The first lesson, simple as it is, is that whatever court we are in, whatever we are doing, whether we are in a trial court or an appellate court, at the end of our task some human being is going to be affected. Some human life is going to be changed in some way by what we do, whether we do it as trial judges or whether we do it as appellate judges, as far removed from the trial arena as it is possible to be. And so we had better use every power of our minds and our hearts and our beings to get those rulings right.[http://www.gpoaccess.gov/congress/senate/judiciary/sh101-1263/49-52.pdf Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Senate Hearing 101–1263] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100106221819/http://www.gpoaccess.gov/congress/senate/judiciary/sh101-1263/49-52.pdf |date=January 6, 2010 }}, Hearings on the Nomination of David H. Souter, September 13, 1990.}}

Some have pointed to Souter's confirmation hearings as showing the first signs of the liberal bent of his legal principles. He surprised many conservatives when, prompted by Senator Chuck Grassley to describe his views on "judicial activism" and "government by the judiciary", he responded, "Courts must accept their own responsibility for making a just society." He added that the court was obligated to respond to pressing social concerns that were addressed by the Constitution but which other branches of government had failed to take up.

Despite organized opposition by numerous civil society groups, Souter won confirmation easily, with all votes in opposition coming from Democrats.Taranto, James and Leo, Leonard [https://books.google.com/books?id=oZrl2NaIpGUC&pg=PA235 "Presidential Leadership"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150407024748/http://books.google.com/books?id=oZrl2NaIpGUC&pg=PA235 |date=April 7, 2015 }}, Free Press, 2004 His performance at the confirmation hearings ensured his approval by the Senate; Walter Dellinger, a liberal Democrat and an adviser to the Senate Judiciary Committee, called Souter "the most intellectually impressive nominee I've ever seen".{{Cite news |last1=Greenhouse |first1=Linda |date=September 17, 1990 |title=The 'Not Bork' Test; Senators Know What Judge Souter Isn't, But a Question Remains: Is That Enough? |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/09/17/us/not-bork-test-senators-know-what-judge-souter-isn-t-but-question-remains-that.html |access-date=July 3, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite book |last1=Hensley |first1=Thomas R. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iGLZyxI_w9kC&dq=%22souter%27s+performance%22+senate+hearing&pg=PA82 |title=The Rehnquist Court: Justices, Rulings, and Legacy |last2=Hale |first2=Kathleen |last3=Snook |first3=Carl |page=82 |date=2006 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-1-57607-200-4 |language=en}} The Senate Judiciary Committee reported out the nomination by a vote of 13–1, with Ted Kennedy the lone dissenter.{{Cite web |title=Judiciary Committee Votes On Recent Supreme Court Nominees {{!}} United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary |url=https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/nominations/supreme-court/committee-votes |access-date=July 6, 2022 |website=www.judiciary.senate.gov |language=en}} The full Senate confirmed the nomination on October 2, 1990, by a vote of 90–9 (Pete Wilson of California was absent due to campaigning for the state's gubernatorial election, which he won).{{cite web|url=https://www.congress.gov/nomination/101st-congress/1414|title=PN1414 - Nomination of David H. Souter for Supreme Court of the United States, 101st Congress (1989-1990)|date=October 2, 1990|website=www.congress.gov|access-date=June 27, 2017|archive-date=April 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180407183814/https://www.congress.gov/nomination/101st-congress/1414|url-status=live}} Souter was sworn into office seven days after his confirmation.

Nine senators voted against Souter: Kennedy and John Kerry of Massachusetts; Bill Bradley and Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey; Brock Adams of Washington; Daniel Akaka of Hawaii; Quentin Burdick of North Dakota; Alan Cranston of California; and Barbara Mikulski of Maryland. They painted Souter as a right-winger in the mold of Robert Bork.{{Cite web|url=https://www.emkinstitute.org/resources/warren-rudman-oral-history-senator-new-hampshire|title=Warren Rudman Oral History, Senator, New Hampshire|last1=Boston|first1=Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate Columbia Point 210 Morrissey Blvd|last2=Ma 02125|website=Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate|language=en|access-date=October 18, 2019|archive-date=October 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191018023502/https://www.emkinstitute.org/resources/warren-rudman-oral-history-senator-new-hampshire|url-status=live}}

U.S. Supreme Court

File:David Souter at HLS 1.jpg

Souter opposed having cameras in the Supreme Court during oral arguments, saying the media would take questions out of context and the proceedings would be politicized.[https://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/30/us/on-cameras-in-supreme-court-souter-says-over-my-dead-body.html On Cameras in Supreme Court, Souter Says, 'Over My Dead Body'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180729085122/https://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/30/us/on-cameras-in-supreme-court-souter-says-over-my-dead-body.html |date=July 29, 2018 }}, The New York Times, March 30, 1996

Souter served as the Court's designated representative to Congress on at least one occasion, testifying before committees about the Court's needs for additional funding to refurbish its building and for other projects.

= Judicial philosophy =

At the time of Souter's appointment, John Sununu assured President Bush and conservatives that Souter would be a "home run" for conservatism.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/08/24/us/conservative-says-sununu-assured-him-on-souter.html|title=Conservative Says Sununu Assured Him on Souter|last1=Shenon|first1=Philip|date=August 24, 1990|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=October 18, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=October 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191018023454/https://www.nytimes.com/1990/08/24/us/conservative-says-sununu-assured-him-on-souter.html|url-status=live}} In his testimony before the Senate, Souter was thought by conservatives to be a strict constructionist on constitutional matters, but he portrayed himself as an incrementalist who disliked drastic change and attached a high importance to precedent.{{Cite web|url=https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GPO-CHRG-SOUTER/pdf/GPO-CHRG-SOUTER.pdf|title=Hearings Before the Committee on the Judiciary United States Senate on the Nomination of David H. Souter to be Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States|date=September 19, 1990|website=govinfo.gov|access-date=October 17, 2019|archive-date=January 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200115202452/https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GPO-CHRG-SOUTER/pdf/GPO-CHRG-SOUTER.pdf|url-status=live}}Roosevelt, Kermit.

[http://www.slate.com/id/2217434/pagenum/all/ Justice CincinnatusDavid Souter—a dying breed, the Yankee Republican] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100124054617/http://www.slate.com/id/2217434/pagenum/all |date=January 24, 2010 }}, Slate, May 1, 2009. In the state attorney general's office and as a state Supreme Court judge, he had never been tested on matters of federal law.

After the appointment of Clarence Thomas, Souter moved toward the ideological middle. In the 1992 case Lee v. Weisman, Souter voted with the liberal wing and against allowing prayer at a high school graduation ceremony.{{Cite journal|last=Perrin|first=Marilyn|date=1994|title=Lee v. Weisman: Unanswered Prayers|url=http://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1573&context=plr|journal=Pepperdine Law Review|volume=21|pages=250|access-date=October 18, 2019|archive-date=November 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108151021/https://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=1573&context=plr|url-status=live}}

In the 1992 case Planned Parenthood v. Casey, Souter voted with the moderate wing in a majority decision in which the Court reaffirmed the essential holding in Roe v. Wade but narrowed its scope. Justice Anthony Kennedy had considered overturning Roe and upholding all the restrictions at issue in Casey. Souter considered upholding all the restrictions but was uneasy about overturning Roe. After consulting with O'Connor, the three (who came to be known as "the troika") developed a joint opinion that upheld all the restrictions in Casey except the mandatory notification of a husband while asserting the essential holding of Roe, that the Constitution protects the right to an abortion.{{Cite journal|last=Whitman|first=Christina|date=June 2002|title=Looking Back on Planned Parenthood v. Casey|url=https://repository.law.umich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1321&context=articles|journal=Michigan Law Review|volume=100|issue=7|pages=1982|doi=10.2307/1556082|jstor=1556082|access-date=October 18, 2019|archive-date=September 21, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170921233900/http://repository.law.umich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1321&context=articles|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}

By the late 1990s, Souter began to align himself more with Stephen Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, although as of 1995, he sided on more occasions with the more liberalRosen, Jeffrey [https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/23/magazine/23stevens-t.html The Dissenter: Majority of One, Stevens at the Supreme Court] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124133243/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/23/magazine/23stevens-t.html |date=November 24, 2020 }}, The New York Times, September 23, 2007 justice John Paul Stevens than with either Breyer or Ginsburg, both Clinton appointees.Ponnuru, Ramesh [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/is_n17_v47/ai_17374429 Empty Souter-Supreme Court Justice David Souter] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080917161658/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/is_n17_v47/ai_17374429 |date=September 17, 2008 }}, National Review, September 11, 1995 On death penalty cases, workers' rights cases, defendants' rights cases, and other issues, Souter began increasingly voting with the Court's liberals,See Segal–Cover score. and later came to be considered part of the Court's liberal wing. Because of this, many conservatives view Souter's appointment as an error of the Bush presidency.Greenfield, Jeff [https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/07/09/david-souter-the-supreme-court-justice-who-built-the-trump-court-218953 David Souter: The Justice Who Built The Trump Court] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180710164046/https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/07/09/david-souter-the-supreme-court-justice-who-built-the-trump-court-218953 |date=July 10, 2018 }} Politico Magazine, July 9, 2018 For example, after widespread speculation that President George W. Bush intended to appoint Alberto Gonzales—whose perceived views on affirmative action and abortion drew criticism—to the Court, some conservative Senate staffers popularized the slogan "Gonzales is Spanish for Souter".{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SQxqXLSy9wcC&q=gonzales+is+spanish+for+souter&pg=PA246|title=Supreme Conflict: The Inside Story of the Struggle for Control of the United States Supreme Court|last=Greenburg|first=Jan Crawford|date=2007|publisher=Penguin|isbn=9781594201011|pages=246|language=en|access-date=November 10, 2020|archive-date=November 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108151022/https://books.google.com/books?id=SQxqXLSy9wcC&q=gonzales+is+spanish+for+souter&pg=PA246|url-status=live}} Conversely, Ted Kennedy, one of nine senators to have voted against Souter's confirmation, later expressed regret about his vote.{{Cite web |title = Ted Kennedy Discusses Current Congressional Issues|url=https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/en/date/2001-07-21/segment/00|date = July 21, 2001}}

A Wall Street Journal opinion piece ten years after Souter's nomination called Souter a "liberal jurist" and said that Rudman took "pride in recounting how he sold Mr. Souter to gullible White House Chief of Staff John Sununu as a confirmable conservative. Then they both sold the judge to President Bush, who wanted above all else to avoid a confirmation battle."{{Cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB951789438683921325|title=Chief Justice Souter?|date=February 29, 2000|work=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=October 18, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0099-9660|archive-date=October 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191018023452/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB951789438683921325|url-status=live}} Rudman wrote in his memoir that he had "suspected all along" that Souter would not "overturn activist liberal precedents." Sununu later said that he had "a lot of disappointment" in Souter's positions on the Court and would have preferred him to be more like Antonin Scalia. In contrast, President Bush said several years after Souter's appointment that he was proud of Souter's "outstanding" service and "outstanding intellect" and that Souter would "serve for years on the Court, and he will serve with honor always and with brilliance".{{Cite news |last=Garrow |first=David J. |date=September 25, 1994 |title=Justice Souter Emerges |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/25/magazine/justice-souter-emerges.html |access-date=July 3, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}

= Notable decisions =

== ''Planned Parenthood v. Casey'' ==

In the 1992 case Planned Parenthood v. Casey, the Supreme Court upheld the right to abortion as established by the "essential holding" of Roe v. Wade (1973) and issued as its "key judgment" the imposition of the undue burden standard when evaluating state-imposed restrictions on that right. The controlling plurality decision in the case was joined by Souter, Kennedy and O'Connor. Souter is widely believed to have written the section of the opinion that addresses the issue of stare decisis and set out a four-part test in determining whether to overrule a prior decision.{{Cite web |last=Wermiel |first=Stephen |date=October 2, 2019 |title=SCOTUS for law students: Supreme Court precedent |url=https://www.scotusblog.com/2019/10/scotus-for-law-students-supreme-court-precedent/ |access-date=July 3, 2022 |website=SCOTUSblog}} David Garrow later called that section "the most eloquent section of the opinion" and said it includes "two paragraphs that rank among the most memorable lines ever authored by an American jurist".

== ''Bush v. Gore'' ==

In 2000, Souter voted along with three other justices in Bush v. Gore to allow the presidential election recount to continue, while the majority voted to end the recount. The decision allowed the declaration of George W. Bush as the winner of the election in Florida to stand.{{cite book|last=Dershowitz|first=Alan|url=https://archive.org/details/supremeinjustice00alan_0/page/174|title=Supreme Injustice: How the High Court Hijacked Election 2000|pages=174, 198|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2001}}

In his 2007 book The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court, Jeffrey Toobin wrote of Souter's reaction to Bush v. Gore:

{{blockquote|Toughened, or coarsened, by their worldly lives, the other dissenters could shrug and move on, but Souter couldn't. His whole life was being a judge. He came from a tradition where the independence of the judiciary was the foundation of the rule of law. And Souter believed Bush v. Gore mocked that tradition. His colleagues' actions were so transparently, so crudely partisan that Souter thought he might not be able to serve with them anymore. Souter seriously considered resigning. For many months, it was not at all clear whether he would remain as a justice. That the Court met in a city he loathed made the decision even harder. At the urging of a handful of close friends, he decided to stay on, but his attitude toward the Court was never the same. There were times when David Souter thought of Bush v. Gore and wept.[https://blogs.wsj.com/law/2007/09/06/did-bush-v-gore-make-justice-souter-weep/ Did Bush v. Gore Make Justice Souter Weep?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171125112833/https://blogs.wsj.com/law/2007/09/06/did-bush-v-gore-make-justice-souter-weep/ |date=November 25, 2017 }}, The Wall Street Journal, September 6, 2007}}

The above passage was disputed by Souter's longtime friend Warren Rudman. Rudman told the New Hampshire Union Leader that while Souter was discomfited by Bush v. Gore, it was not true that he had broken down into tears over it.

= Relationship with other justices =

File:Rehnquist Court in 1994.jpg]]

Souter worked well with Sandra Day O'Connor and had a good relationship with both her and her husband during her days on the court. He generally had a good working relationship with every justice, but was particularly fond of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and considered John Paul Stevens to be the "smartest" justice.{{rp|258}}

= International recognition =

Even though Souter had never traveled outside the United States during his years with the Supreme Court, he still gained significant recognition abroad. In 1995, a series of articles based on his written opinions and titled "Souter Court" was published by a Moscow legal journal, The Russian Justice. Those were followed by a book, written in Russian and bearing Souter's name in the title.Петр Баренбойм, "3000 лет доктрины разделения властей: Суд Сьютера", M., 1996. / Petr Barenboim, "3000 years of the separation of powers doctrine: Souter court", Moscow, 1996; 2nd ed., 2003. / {{ISBN|5-7619-0015-7}}, http://lccn.loc.gov/2001434516 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108151037/https://catalog.loc.gov/vwebv/search?searchCode=LCCN&searchArg=2001434516&searchType=1&permalink=y |date=November 8, 2021 }} Justice of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation Yury Danilov, reviewing the 2nd edition of the book in a Moscow English-language daily, made the following remark on Souter's position in Bush v. Gore: "In a most critical and delicate situation, David Souter had maintained the independence of his position and in this respect had become a symbol of the independence of the judiciary."Yury Danilov, The Judiciary: From Samuel to Souter, The Moscow News, October 15, 2003.Peter Barenboim, [http://www.florentine-society.ru/pdf/Biblical_Roots_of_Separation_of_Powers.pdf «Biblical Roots of Separation of Powers», Moscow, 2005] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102024341/http://www.florentine-society.ru/pdf/Biblical_Roots_of_Separation_of_Powers.pdf |date=November 2, 2012 }}, p.163, {{ISBN|5-94381-123-0}}

= Retirement =

File:Justice david souter harvard commencement 2010.JPG on May 27, 2010]]

Long before the election of President Obama, Souter had expressed a desire to leave Washington, D.C., and return to New Hampshire.{{cite news |last1=Barnes |first1=Robert |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/30/AR2009043004361.html |title=Souter Reportedly Planning to Retire From High Court |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=May 1, 2009 |access-date=August 26, 2017 |archive-date=April 1, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170401163228/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/30/AR2009043004361.html |url-status=live }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/justice-souter-longs-for-rural-hideaway/|title=Justice Souter longs for rural hideaway|last=Rucker|first=Philip|date=May 3, 2009|website=The Seattle Times|language=en-US|access-date=October 18, 2019|archive-date=October 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191018023501/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/justice-souter-longs-for-rural-hideaway/|url-status=live}} The election of a Democratic president in 2008 may have made Souter more inclined to retire, but he did not want to create a situation in which there would be multiple vacancies at once.{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103694193|title=Supreme Court Justice Souter To Retire|last1=Totenberg|first1=Nina|date=April 30, 2009|work=NPR|access-date=May 29, 2009|archive-date=May 4, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090504031636/http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103694193|url-status=live}} Souter apparently became satisfied that no other justices planned to retire at the end of the Supreme Court's term in June 2009. As a result, in mid-April 2009 he privately notified the White House of his intent to retire at the conclusion of that term.{{cite news |last1=Baker |first1=Peter |last2=Nagourney |first2=Adam |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/28/us/politics/28select.html |title=Sotomayor Pick a Product of Lessons From Past Battles |work=The New York Times |date=May 28, 2009 |access-date=May 29, 2009 |archive-date=March 16, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150316085646/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/28/us/politics/28select.html |url-status=live }} Souter sent Obama a retirement letter on May 1, effective at the start of the Supreme Court's 2009 summer recess.{{cite news|work=The New York Times| date = May 1, 2009| title = David H. Souter Letter to President Obama, May 1, 2009| url = http://graphics8.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/politics/20090501_Souter.pdf| last = Souter| first = David H.| access-date = May 20, 2010| archive-date = May 21, 2009| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090521064919/http://graphics8.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/politics/20090501_Souter.pdf| url-status = live}} Later that day Obama made an unscheduled appearance during the daily White House press briefing to announce Souter's retirement.[http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/01/obama-announces-souters-retirement/ Obama Announces Souter Retirement] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090504171832/http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/01/obama-announces-souters-retirement/ |date=May 4, 2009 }}, The New York Times, Caucus Blog, May 1, 2009 On May 26, 2009, Obama announced his nomination of federal appeals court judge Sonia Sotomayor.{{cite news |title=Sonia Sotomayor: Obama's Supreme Court Replacement for Ginsburg? |url=http://www.esquire.com/features/75-most-influential/obama-supreme-court-pick-1008 |work=Esquire |date=February 6, 2009 |access-date=May 1, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090415235838/http://www.esquire.com/features/75-most-influential/obama-supreme-court-pick-1008 |archive-date=April 15, 2009}} She was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on August 6.{{cite web |title=U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 105th Congress – 2nd Session |url=https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=105&session=2&vote=00295 |publisher=United States Senate |access-date=February 16, 2018 |archive-date=December 10, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171210060851/https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=105&session=2&vote=00295 |url-status=live}}

On June 29, 2009, the last day of the Court's 2008–2009 term, Chief Justice Roberts read a letter to Souter that had been signed by all eight of his colleagues as well as retired Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, thanking him for his service, and Souter read a letter to his colleagues reciprocating their good wishes.{{cite news |last=Phillips |first=Kate |url=http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/29/souter-and-justices-exchange-farewells/ |title=Souter and Justices Exchange Farewells |work=The New York Times |date=June 29, 2009 |access-date=July 9, 2009 |archive-date=July 3, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090703072317/http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/29/souter-and-justices-exchange-farewells/ |url-status=live }}

Souter's papers have been donated to the New Hampshire Historical Society and will not be made public until at least 50 years after his death.{{Cite web |last=Gresko |first=Jessica |date=May 11, 2022 |title=For Supreme Court justices, secrecy is part of the job |url=https://apnews.com/article/covid-us-supreme-court-health-87c198ea3de079eaf3121ffeb4985ba0 |access-date=May 16, 2022 |website=Associated Press |language=en}}

Post-Supreme Court career

As a Supreme Court justice with retired status, Souter remained a judge and was entitled to sit by designation on lower courts. After his retirement from the Supreme Court and until 2020, he regularly sat by designation on panels of the First Circuit Court of Appeals, based in Boston and covering Maine, Massachusetts, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, and his adopted home state of New Hampshire, generally in February or March of each year.{{cite web

| title = First Circuit 2010 Annual Report

| url = http://www.ca1.uscourts.gov/sites/ca1/files/oce/2010AnnualReport.pdf

| publisher = Circuit Executive, United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit

| author = Wente, Gary H.

| date = September 7, 2012

| access-date = December 28, 2012

| page = 8

| quote = In January, February, March, and May 2010, retired United States Supreme Court Justice David Souter sat with the court.

| editor = Pagano, Florence

| editor2 = Dumas, Michelle

| editor3 = McQuillan, Kelly

| archive-date = December 24, 2016

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161224142226/http://www.ca1.uscourts.gov/sites/ca1/files/oce/2010AnnualReport.pdf

| url-status = live

}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.courthousenews.com/2016/06/21/first-circuit-upholds-firearms-restrictions.htm |title=First Circuit Upholds Firearms Restrictions|author=Carrano, Gina|access-date=August 22, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160626075641/http://www.courthousenews.com/2016/06/21/first-circuit-upholds-firearms-restrictions.htm |archive-date=June 26, 2016 |url-status=dead }}

Souter maintained a low public profile after retiring from the Supreme Court. In one exception, comments he made during a 2012 appearance at the Capitol Center for the Arts in New Hampshire about the dangers of "civic ignorance" were, in 2016, called "remarkably prescient" of the presidential campaign of Donald Trump.{{Cite web |title=Souter warned of a Trump-like candidate in prescient remarks |url=https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/souter-warned-trump-candidate-prescient-remarks-msna916691 |access-date=July 4, 2022 |website=MSNBC.com |date=October 21, 2016 |language=en}}

Personal life

Once named by The Washington Post as one of Washington's 10 Most Eligible Bachelors, Souter never married, though he was once engaged. He was an Episcopalian.{{cite web |title=David Souter Fast Facts |url=https://www.cnn.com/2013/07/26/us/david-souter-fast-facts/index.html |website=CNN |access-date=October 22, 2023 |language=en |date=July 26, 2013}}

Souter was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 1994,{{Cite web|title=APS Member History|url=https://search.amphilsoc.org/memhist/search?creator=David+Souter&title=&subject=&subdiv=&mem=&year=&year-max=&dead=&keyword=&smode=advanced|access-date=February 10, 2022|website=search.amphilsoc.org}} and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1997.{{Cite web|title=David Souter|url=https://www.amacad.org/person/david-souter|access-date=February 10, 2022|website=American Academy of Arts & Sciences|language=en}}

In 2004, Souter was mugged while jogging between his home and the Fort Lesley J. McNair Army Base in Washington, D.C.. He suffered minor injuries from the event, visiting the MedStar Washington Hospital Center for treatment.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/02/us/justice-souter-is-attacked-while-jogging.html|title=Justice Souter Is Attacked While Jogging|date=May 2, 2004|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=December 9, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=August 24, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190824021227/https://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/02/us/justice-souter-is-attacked-while-jogging.html|url-status=live}} News of the attack led to public scrutiny of the Supreme Court Police's security detail, which was not present at the time.{{Cite book|title=Blackmun, Harry A. (1908-1999), Supreme Court justice|last=Yarbrough|first=Tinsley E.|date=January 2001|publisher=Oxford University Press|series=American National Biography Online|doi = 10.1093/anb/9780198606697.article.1101205}}

According to Jeffrey Toobin's 2007 book The Nine, Souter had a decidedly low-tech lifestyle: He wrote with a fountain pen, did not use email, and had no cellphone or answering machine. While serving on the Supreme Court, he preferred to drive to New Hampshire for the summer, where he enjoyed mountain climbing. Souter also performed his own home repairs[https://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/04/us/04souter.html A No-Frills Embrace for a Low-Key Justice] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160403195925/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/04/us/04souter.html |date=April 3, 2016 }}, The New York Times, May 3, 2009 and was known for his daily lunch of an apple and unflavored yogurt.{{Cite news|url=http://www.economist.com/node/13611101|title=Following Souter|date=May 7, 2009|newspaper=The Economist|access-date=March 13, 2017|issn=0013-0613|archive-date=July 31, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160731045016/http://www.economist.com/node/13611101|url-status=live}}

Former Supreme Court correspondent Linda Greenhouse wrote of Souter that "to focus on his eccentricities—his daily lunch of yogurt and an apple, core and all; the absence of a computer in his personal office—is to miss the essence of a man who in fact is perfectly suited to his job, just not to its trappings. His polite but persistent questioning of lawyers who appear before the court displays his meticulous preparation and his mastery of the case at hand and the cases relevant to it. Far from being out of touch with the modern world, he has simply refused to surrender to it control over aspects of his own life that give him deep contentment: hiking, sailing, time with old friends, reading history."{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/03/weekinreview/03greenhouse.html|title=David H. Souter: Justice Unbound|last=Greenhouse|first=Linda|date=May 2, 2009|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=March 13, 2017|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=June 26, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170626230006/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/03/weekinreview/03greenhouse.html|url-status=live}}

In early August 2009, Souter moved from his family farmhouse in Weare to a Cape Cod-style single-story house in nearby Hopkinton, New Hampshire, a town in Merrimack County northeast of Weare and immediately west of the state capital of Concord. Souter told a disappointed Weare neighbor that the two-story family farmhouse was not structurally sound enough to support the thousands of books he owned and that he wished to live on one level.[https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/04/us/04souter.html Off the Bench, Souter Leaves Farmhouse Behind] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151124022703/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/04/us/04souter.html |date=November 24, 2015 }}, The New York Times, August 3, 2009

Over the years, Souter served on hospital boards and civic committees.{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/24/us/man-in-the-news-an-intellectual-mind-david-hackett-souter.html |title=An 'Intellectual Mind': David Hackett Souter |author=Linda Greenhouse |work=The New York Times |date=July 24, 1990 |access-date=March 7, 2011 |archive-date=November 12, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121112154658/http://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/24/us/man-in-the-news-an-intellectual-mind-david-hackett-souter.html |url-status=live }}{{cite news |url=https://blogs.wsj.com/law/2009/05/20/whats-in-souters-future-civics-for-starters/ |title=What's in Souter's Future? Civics, for Starters |author=Ashby Jones |work=The Wall Street Journal |date=May 20, 2009 |access-date=March 7, 2011 |archive-date=January 18, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118111118/http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2009/05/20/whats-in-souters-future-civics-for-starters/ |url-status=live }} He was an honorary co-chair of the We the People National Advisory Committee.[http://www.civiced.org/index.php?page=national_advisory_committee National Advisory Committee] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090316055838/http://www.civiced.org/index.php?page=national_advisory_committee |date=March 16, 2009 }}

= Death =

Souter died in his home on May 8, 2025, aged 85.{{Cite web |last=Fritze |first=John |date=May 9, 2025 |title=Retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter dies at 85 {{!}} CNN Politics |url=https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/09/politics/souter-supreme-court-dies |access-date=May 9, 2025 |website=CNN |language=en}} Chief Justice John Roberts said after his death, "Justice David Souter served our Court with great distinction for nearly twenty years. He brought uncommon wisdom and kindness to a lifetime of public service. After retiring to his beloved New Hampshire in 2009, he continued to render significant service to our branch by sitting regularly on the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit for more than a decade. He will be greatly missed."{{Cite web |title=Press Releases - pr_05-09-25 - Supreme Court of the United States |url=https://www.supremecourt.gov/publicinfo/press/pressreleases/pr_05-09-25 |access-date=May 9, 2025 |website=supremecourt.gov}}

References

External links

{{IMDb name| 1197505}}
{{FJC Bio|2244|nid=1388096|name=David Hackett Souter}}
{{Ballotpedia|David_Souter}}
[http://www.ontheissues.org/David_Souter.htm Issue positions and quotes] at On the Issues
{{C-SPAN|15083}}
[https://web.archive.org/web/20090804004404/http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=21755 Online Symposium: Justice Souter and the First Amendment], First Amendment Center, July 23, 2009
[https://www.scribd.com/doc/33745569 The Selling of Judge David Souter to Movement Conservatives]
[https://archive.today/20110717140317/http://www.hlrecord.org/news/souter-looks-beyond-supreme-court-1.625945 David Souter discusses his post-Supreme Court future] in the Harvard Law Record, October 2, 2009
[http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2010/05/text-of-justice-david-souters-speech/ Justice David Souter's Harvard Commencement Remarks], Harvard Gazette, May 27, 2010
[http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/browse/collection.action?collectionCode=GPO&browsePath=Supreme+Court+Nomination+Hearings%2FSouter&isCollapsed=false&leafLevelBrowse=false&isDocumentResults=true&ycord=463 Supreme Court Associate Justice Nomination Hearings on David Hackett Souter in September 1990] United States Government Publishing Office