Jackson accused the Court of “rewarding lawlessness”
Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson is emerging as a vocal critic within the Court’s liberal wing, issuing pointed dissents against the six-member conservative majority this term. In recent rulings—spanning executive authority, immigration and civil liberties—Jackson warned of the erosion of judicial checks and constitutional norms.
In one case, she sharply rebuked the majority’s limits on lower court injunctions, writing, “When the Government says ‘do not allow the lower courts to enjoin executive action universally…’ what it is actually saying is that the Executive wants to continue doing something that a court has determined violates the Constitution—please allow this.”
Jackson also joined Justice Sonia Sotomayor in dissent over shrinking judicial intervention in emergency orders and aggressive immigration decisions, warning that conservatives’ tactics sideline full review. Her dissents frequently accuse the Court of “rewarding lawlessness” and signal growing alarm over an expanding executive under conservative privilege.