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Sandra Day O'Connor
Judge

Sandra Day O'Connor

Famoose for

Becoming the first woman on the US Supreme Court.

Grutter v. Bollinger · Lazy B

Born
26 March 1930
Birthplace
El Paso
Died
1 December 2023

More people

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Sandra Day O'Connor

Sandra Day O’Connor was an American judge who served on the US Supreme Court from 1981 to 2006 after a career in Arizona law and politics.

Early life

Ranch and study

Grew up on a family ranch in Arizona and attended school in El Paso, then earned economics and law degrees at Stanford.

Career

  1. 1981

    Supreme Court

    Was appointed by President Ronald Reagan and confirmed by the Senate.

  2. 1992

    Casey opinion

    Co-authored the controlling opinion in Planned Parenthood v. Casey.

  3. 2006

    Retirement

    Retired when her successor took office.

Selected work

Grutter v. Bollinger

Wrote the majority opinion concerning university admissions.

Lazy B

Co-wrote a memoir of ranch life with her brother H. Alan Day.

Beyond work

Family

Married John O’Connor in 1952 and later raised awareness of Alzheimer’s disease after his illness.

Sources & photo creditBiography and career ↗Biographical references ↗

Original photograph. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.

Photo: Library of Congress (Transferred by Sven Manguard,. Public domain · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.