{"id":2535463,"date":"2026-01-13T19:45:01","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T00:45:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sonia-sotomayor-swipes-at-supreme-court-rejecting-precedent-again\/"},"modified":"2026-01-13T19:47:01","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T00:47:01","slug":"sonia-sotomayor-swipes-at-supreme-court-rejecting-precedent-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sonia-sotomayor-swipes-at-supreme-court-rejecting-precedent-again\/","title":{"rendered":"Sonia Sotomayor swipes at Supreme Court rejecting precedent again"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsonia-sotomayor-swipes-at-supreme-court-rejecting-precedent-again%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2535463&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Justice Sonia Sotomayor sharply criticized the Supreme Court for increasingly adopting positions once voiced only in dissents,saying during oral argument in Little v. Hecox,&#8221;We&#8217;ve been doing an awful lot of that lately.&#8221; She pressed DOJ lawyer Hashim Mooppan over the department&#8217;s brief asking the Court to embrace views expressed by minority dissenters in prior cases. The comment came amid a string of major rulings and looming decisions in which the Court has overturned or limited long-standing precedents-most notably Dobbs (abortion) and Students for Fair Admissions (affirmative action)-and may further curtail precedents like Humphrey&#8217;s Executor. Sotomayor has repeatedly offered pointed critiques from the bench this term, and the justices appeared likely split along ideological lines in the sports cases, with the three liberal justices favoring the biological male athletes and the conservative majority inclined to uphold state restrictions.The Court is expected to issue opinions in these and several other high-profile cases by the end of June.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Sotomayor swipes at Supreme Court rejecting precedent: &lsquo;We&rsquo;ve been doing an awful lot of that lately&rsquo;<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2468620\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Justice <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/sonia-sotomayor\/\">Sonia Sotomayor<\/a> offered sharp commentary on Tuesday about the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/supreme-court\/\">Supreme Court<\/a>&lsquo;s recent rulings, claiming the high court has adopted several past dissenting opinions as new rulings.<\/p>\n<p>During oral arguments for <em>Little v. Hecox<\/em>, one of two cases the Supreme Court heard Tuesday regarding <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/eight-cases-to-watch-in-the-new-supreme-court-term\/\" title=\"Eight ... to watch in the new ... term\">state laws limiting women&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s sports to biological women, Sotomayor questioned Justice Department lawyer Hashim Mooppan about the DOJ&rsquo;s position on how to handle the claim that Idaho&rsquo;s law violates the equal protection clause. She pointed to how the DOJ&rsquo;s brief asked the high court to adopt the opinion of a dissent in a prior ruling.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/4416613\/supreme-court-questions-biological-differences-womens-sports\/\">Supreme Court questions whether hormone drugs can erase boys&#8217; biological advantage over girls in sports<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/4415304\/supreme-court-defining-sex-transgender-sports-bans\/\">Supreme Court considers how defining sex would <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >affect transgender sports bans<\/a><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/4415398\/riley-gaines-interview-alleged-victim-pivotal-supreme-court-case\/\">Riley Gaines to interview alleged victim in West Virginia v. B.P.J.<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re asking the court to adopt views expressed by two minority dissenting judges in this case. We&rsquo;ve been doing an awful lot of that lately,&rdquo; Sotomayor asked, to which Mooppan grinned.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re smiling because it&rsquo;s true. But you&rsquo;re asking us to adopt an approach that we have rejected as a majority court and accept what dissenters are doing, correct?&rdquo; Sotomayor continued.<\/p>\n<p>The Supreme Court has undone several key precedents in recent years, including with the 2022 ruling in <em>Dobbs v. Jackson Women&rsquo;s Health Organization<\/em> regarding abortion and the 2023 ruling in <em>Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard<\/em>. The high court also looks <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/3908676\/supreme-court-grapples-executive-power-independent-agencies\/\">poised<\/a> to strike down or significantly roll back the 1935 ruling in <em>Humphrey&rsquo;s Executor v. United States<\/em>, which would expand the president&rsquo;s ability to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-notches-legal-wins-after-series-of-setbacks\/\" title=\"Trump notches legal wins after series of setbacks\">fire independent agency heads<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Sotomayor has offered several recent barbs during oral arguments, including by seemingly alluding to President Donald Trump giving Elon Musk a job in his administration as an <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/3912342\/sonia-sotomayor-alludes-elon-musk-trump-administration-job-discussing-corruption\/\">example of corruption<\/a> and claiming that the Trump administration asked the high court to &ldquo;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/3910768\/sonia-sotomayor-trump-supreme-court-ftc-firing-case\/\">destroy the structure of government<\/a>.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Sotomayor and the other two liberal justices appeared likely on Tuesday to side with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/supreme-court-tackles-hormone-use-in-erasing-boys-biological-advantage\/\" title=\"... tackles hormone use in erasing boys&#039; biological advantage\">biological male athletes suing<\/a> to participate in women&rsquo;s sports, but the conservative majority on the high court appeared likely to side with the two states in upholding their laws.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/4415304\/supreme-court-defining-sex-transgender-sports-bans\/\">SUPREME COURT CONSIDERS HOW DEFINING SEX WOULD AFFECT TRANSGENDER SPORTS BANS<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Supreme Court is expected to release opinions in both cases by the end of June. The two cases are some of the most highly anticipated decisions still to come from the high court this term.<\/p>\n<p>The pair of cases regarding women&rsquo;s sports laws is among several other high-profile cases the justices have heard or will hear this term. Other notable cases include challenges to Trump&rsquo;s&nbsp;sweeping tariffs, birthright citizenship, late-arriving mail ballots, and gun laws. Decisions in the other high-profile cases could come as soon as Wednesday or, at the latest, by the end of June.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sotomayor: Court often adopts dissenting views<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2638,"featured_media":2535464,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/AP25259487585915.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[5360,33119,32275],"class_list":["post-2535463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-precedent","tag-sonia-sotomayor","tag-supreme-court"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/AP25259487585915.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2535463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2638"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2535463"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2535463\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2535467,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2535463\/revisions\/2535467"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2535464"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2535463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2535463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2535463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}