Sandra Day O'Connor

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor (Ret.) received the Henry J. Friendly Medal, recognizing her post-retirement and lifelong commitment to justice enforcement, on Oct. 20, in New York City.

The medal is given by the American Law Institute Awards Committee, and was established after the death of Judge Friendly by his former law clerks. Before Justice O’Connor, Nicholas Katzenbach, former Attorney General of the United States, received the award in 2009.

Read about the award here.

Justice O’Connor was nominated to be the first woman on the country’s highest court by President Ronald Reagan. She served from Sept. 25, 1981, until her retirement on Jan. 31, 2006, and during that time was often a crucial deciding vote in 5-4 decisions on some of the most controversial issues of our time. She is described as a moderate conservative who takes a pragmatic view of jurisprudence. In March of 2006, the College of Law at Arizona State University was named in her honor.