Justice Sonia Sotomayor issued a powerful call to action, urging lawyers to defend the legal system amid escalating political attacks on judges and legal institutions. Speaking at an American Bar Association event in Washington, she emphasized the need for “trained and passionate” lawyers to fight for justice and protect those who cannot defend themselves, warning that the stakes in today’s legal battles are too high to lose.
Her remarks followed similar warnings from Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, both of whom recently spoke out against threats to judicial independence. These statements come as President Trump and his allies continue to attack federal judges and law firms, and as the Supreme Court faces a rising number of emergency appeals tied to Trump’s agenda. The ABA, also under fire from the administration, has filed lawsuits to defend its role in protecting legal standards and civil rights.