Connecticut Deserves Better Than New Supreme Court Nominee

WASHINGTON, D.C., January 27, 2025 – Today Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont announced his intent to nominate William H. Bright Jr. as an associate justice of the state’s supreme court. Bright is a white man and spent his career practicing as a corporate attorney before joining the bench. Gov. Lamont is missing an opportunity to add diversity — particularly professional diversity — to the court.

Professional diversity is incredibly informative when it comes to how judges rule from the bench. Studies have shown that judges who were former corporate attorneys, for example, are more likely to rule against workers in employment cases. Similarly, judges with more privileged socioeconomic backgrounds tend to favor wealthy litigants over those who are living in poverty. Alternatively, judges from professionally diverse backgrounds such as in civil rights, public defense, or legal aid are more likely to rule for people over corporate interests.

Given all but one of the other justices on the Connecticut Supreme Court are already former corporate attorneys and white men continue to be likewise overrepresented on the bench, Lamont’s selection of Bright is a disappointing reinforcement of the status quo.

Vasu Abhiraman, Alliance for Justice Rosenthal Building the Bench Director, issued the following statement:

“At a time when the U.S. Supreme Court is already so biased toward the wealthy and corporations, the Connecticut Supreme Court deserves more. The people of Connecticut would be much better served by a fresh, people-centered perspective on their highest court, someone with a lifetime of experience fighting for Connecticut’s working people. We know there are incredibly talented and qualified former public defenders, civil rights attorneys, workers’ rights attorneys, and others who could capably serve on Connecticut’s highest court. Gov. Lamont missed an opportunity to do better here, and the legislature would be wise to reject this pick and force him to do so.”