An April 28 Insider article reveals that Jane Sullivan Roberts, wife of Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, earned $10.3 million in commissions from elite law firms likely to appear before her husband’s court, from 2007-2014, while her husband merely disclosed that she earned a “salary” from the legal recruitment firm that employs her.
The revelations come from a whistleblower whose sworn affidavit is now in the hands of House and Senate Judiciary Committees. He pointed out that firms who practice or hope to practice before the Supreme Court would undoubtedly feel pressure to do business with the chief justice’s wife. In any event, Jane Roberts’ work paid off handsomely.
“When I found out that the spouse of the chief justice was soliciting business from law firms, I knew immediately that it was wrong," the whistleblower, Kendal B. Price, who worked alongside Jane Roberts at the legal recruiting firm Major, Lindsey & Africa, told Insider in an interview. "During the time I was there, I was discouraged from ever raising the issue. And I realized that even the law firms who were Jane's clients had nowhere to go. They were being asked by the spouse of the chief justice for business worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, and there was no one to complain to. Most of these firms were likely appearing or seeking to appear before the Supreme Court. It's natural that they'd do anything they felt was necessary to be competitive."
Roberts' apparent $10.3 million in compensation puts her toward the top of the payscale for legal headhunters. Price's disclosures, which were filed under federal whistleblower-protection laws and are now in the hands of the House and Senate Judiciary committees, add to the mounting questions about how Supreme Court justices and their families financially benefit from their special status, an area that Senate Democrats are vowing to investigate after a series of disclosure lapses by the justices themselves.
Just as disturbing, Justice Roberts’ disclosure of his wife’s earnings misleadingly describes them as “salary,” whistleblower Price wrote in an affidavit provided by Insider. While a salary is a guaranteed payment, Mrs. Roberts’ commissions depend on her ability to cultivate and capitalize on relationships with those who do business before her husband, he explained.
Price also pointed out in his affidavit why all litigants should know the sources of Mrs. Roberts’ commissions: “I asked myself, ‘lf I were litigating a case in federal court, would I want to know that the law firm opposing me had recently paid the judge's household over $300,000? lf the judge didn't recuse himself, would I move to have them recused?’ To me, the answer to both questions were obviously ‘yes.’"
A few days ago, I accused Justice Roberts of burying his head in the sand when he refused a Senate request to testify about Supreme Court ethics. At that time, we “only” knew about lack of financial disclosures from Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch. Now we know Roberts is a member of the same club. And by the way? We still want to know who paid off Brett Kavanaugh’s debts just before he was confirmed to the Supreme Court.
What a coincidence that it's all Republican justices who seem to have something to hide.
