Major Controversies Surrounding Amy Coney Barrett: A Detailed Timeline

Public opinion and media debates around Amy Coney Barrett—discover key moments of controversy.

Amy Coney Barrett is an American lawyer and jurist who serves as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States since 2020. She is the fifth woman to hold this position. Nominated by President Donald Trump, Barrett previously served as a U.S. circuit judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit from 2017 to 2020. Her appointment to the Supreme Court was politically charged, reflecting broader debates about the court's ideological balance.

Sections (4)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements Controversies & Scandals

1998: Co-Wrote Law Review Article

In 1998, Amy Coney Barrett co-wrote a law review article with Professor John H. Garvey, a point of discussion during her 2017 confirmation hearing. The article discussed Catholic judges recusing themselves from death penalty cases.

2006: Anti-Abortion Advertisement

In 2006, Barrett signed an advertisement placed by St. Joseph County Right to Life, an anti-abortion group, in a South Bend, Indiana, newspaper, opposing abortion on demand and defending the right to life from fertilization to natural death.

2012: National Federation of Independent Businesses v. Sebelius

In 2012, Barrett criticized the majority opinion written by Chief Justice John Roberts in National Federation of Independent Businesses v. Sebelius, which upheld the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate.

2012: Letter Criticizing Obama Administration

In 2012, Barrett signed a letter criticizing the Obama administration's approach to providing employees of religious institutions with birth control coverage without religious institutions paying for it, calling it an "assault" to religious liberty.

2013: Texas Law Review Article

In 2013, Barrett listed cases she considered "superprecedents" in an article in the Texas Law Review, including Brown v. Board of Education and Mapp v. Ohio, but specifically excluded Roe v. Wade (1973). She stated that Roe v. Wade had not achieved widespread support from jurists, politicians, and the public to become immune to reversal or challenge.

2013: Anti-Roe v. Wade Ad

In 2013, Barrett signed another ad against Roe v. Wade that appeared in Notre Dame's student newspaper and described the decision as having "killed 55 million unborn children". Also in 2013, she spoke at two anti-abortion events at the university.

2016: Merrick Garland Hearings Refused

In 2016, Senate Republicans refused to hold hearings for Merrick Garland during an election year, an event that became a point of contention during Barrett's nomination in 2020.

2016: Comparison to Garland Nomination

In 2020, many observers were angered by the move to fill the Supreme Court vacancy only four months before the end of Trump's term, as the Senate Republican majority had refused to consider President Barack Obama's nomination of Merrick Garland in 2016, more than ten months before the end of his presidency.

September 6, 2017: Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing

On September 6, 2017, a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing was held on Amy Coney Barrett's nomination to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. During the hearing, Senator Dianne Feinstein questioned Barrett about her views on faith and the role of a judge.

2017: Barrett's Critique of Affordable Care Act Ruling

In 2017, Barrett wrote that Chief Justice Roberts had stretched the Affordable Care Act beyond its plausible meaning to save the statute. She stated that had he treated the payment as a penalty, he would have had to invalidate the statute.

2018: Voted Against Striking Down Fetal Remains Law

In 2018, Amy Coney Barrett voted against striking down an Indiana law requiring burial or cremation of fetal remains, aligning with the minority in the decision.

March 2019: Dissent on Felon Firearm Ban

In March 2019, Barrett dissented when the court upheld the federal law prohibiting felons from possessing firearms. She argued that the law violates the Second Amendment because there is no evidence that denying guns to nonviolent felons promotes the government's interest in preventing gun violence.

September 26, 2020: Nomination to the Supreme Court

On September 26, 2020, Amy Coney Barrett was nominated by President Trump to succeed Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the U.S. Supreme Court, a move that sparked considerable controversy due to its proximity to the presidential election.

2020: Nomination Opposition

In 2020, Barrett's nomination was generally opposed by Democrats, particularly due to filling the vacancy close to the election. Republicans generally supported the nomination, and she was a favorite among the Christian right and social conservatives.

June 2021: Fulton v. City of Philadelphia Ruling

In June 2021, Barrett joined a unanimous decision in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, ruling in favor of a Catholic social service agency denied funding for not adopting to same-sex couples and declined to overturn Employment Division v. Smith. Also in June 2021, Barrett was among six justices who rejected the appeal of a Washington State florist who refused to sell floral arrangements to a same-sex couple due to religious beliefs.

November 2021: Mercy San Juan Medical Center Case

In November 2021, Barrett voted with the majority in a 6–3 decision to reject an appeal from Mercy San Juan Medical Center, a Catholic hospital that sought to deny a hysterectomy to a transgender patient on religious grounds. The Court's decision left in place a lower court ruling in favor of the transgender patient. Justices Thomas, Alito, and Gorsuch dissented.