Here’s How Supreme Court Justices Made Money Last Year

Supreme Court justices made at least $2 million in total from book publishers last year, according to financial disclosure forms made public on Monday—just as the high court hands down major decisions on some of this term’s most consequential cases.

Book publishing has emerged as a major source of income for Supreme Court justices, on top of their annual salaries of either $306,600 or $320,700 for the chief justice.

Kentanji Brown Jackson got a $1.18 million book advance from her publisher Penguin Random House, as well as a gift in the form of a painting for her chambers, which was valued at $2,500.

Amy Coney Barrett, whose book “Listening to the Law” came out last September, reported about $849,000 in royalties from the Javelin Group literary agency.

Neil Gorsuch reported $300,000 in royalties from HarperCollins, likely from the children’s book he published earlier this year, as well as just $361.47 in royalties from the Princeton University Press.

Sonia Sotomayor reported just over $88,000 in royalties from Penguin Random House for multiple books, as well as $4,333 in value for concert tickets from Rimas Entertainment—the company that represents Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny.

The form did not specify which concert the justice attended, but Sotomayor said the company “provided tickets for a concert for me and guests while I was on a private trip to Puerto Rico” last August, when Bad Bunny was performing a residency on the island.

The other justices did not report any publishing income, but Samuel Alito, whose book is slated to publish later this year, requested a 90-day extension to file his disclosures.

Several of the justices supplemented their income with small salaries from teaching positions at various law schools. Barrett disclosed she made $33,285 for teaching at Notre Dame Law School, where Brett Kavanaugh also disclosed $33,285 in income. Kavanaugh’s disclosure form also noted he coached 5th and 6th grade and high school girl’s basketball at the Blessed Sacrament school in Washington, D.C., although he did not report any payments from the job. Gorsuch reported $30,379.91 in income for teaching at George Mason University. Clarence Thomas reported receiving $18,000 from Catholic University of America School of Law.

The Supreme Court handed down several consequential decisions on Monday, including overturning a decades-old precedent that will allow President Donald Trump to fire the heads of independent government agencies. However, the high court also ruled against the president’s attempts to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, offering the central bank more protection. The Supreme Court is slated to hand down more decisions on Tuesday, when its term ends.