10 • November 2018 • Nassau Lawyer Criminal Law - More than dust Notorious: The Remarkable On October 1, 2018, the United tribute to society based upon their indi­ States Supreme Court began its 2018- vidual talents and capacities." 13 2019 term. Although Chief Justice John The legal principle announced by Roberts, as is customary, occupied the this case rested on the bedrock of the center chair, the center of much of the half-dozen cases she had litigated during nation's attention was on Associate the 1970s. Her decision even cites the Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. And not first case she had ever argued before necessarily for any reason having to do the high court in 1973: Frontiero u. with the workings of the Court. Richardson. 14 Putting aside Another element of her appeal rests the notable with her affectionate comradery with the example of Wil­ late Antonin Scalia. A judicial odd cou­ liam 0. Douglas, ple, she is a liberal Democrat and he was Supreme Court a conservative Republican. She is Jewish justices are usual­ and he was Catholic. She believes the ly unrecognizable Constitution adapts to changing times as public figures. and he was an originalist. Yet both Ruth Bader Gins­ shared a passion for opera and a gift for burg, however, friendship that had nothing to do with has proven to be either partisan politics or ideology. the exception. After Justice Sandra Day O'Connor Rudy Carmenaty Twenty-five years retired, Justice Ginsburg was the sole after Justice Ginsx woman on the Court until the appoint­ burg joined th'e ment of Sonya Sotomayor. With the Court, few would Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg with Rudy Carmenaty at delicate balance of the long-serving have guessed that she would become a honoring the 10th anniversary of her investiture to the U.S. Supreme Court, 2003. Rehnquist court gone, Justice Ginsburg cultural icon. Distinguished jurist, yes, entered a new phase of her tenure. She by all means. Thoughtful champion of found herself frequently dissenting from women's equality, without a moment's is a ''Ruth Bader Ginger" Cocktail.4 self in the 1960s as an academic, adding the majority. The pragmatism and cau­ hesitation. One ofthe handful of justices FCTRY, a toy manufacturer in her luster to the law faculties at Rutgers tion that often characterized her writ­ to be mentioned alongside Holmes and native Brooklyn, is marketing an RBG and Columbia. Not confining her talents ings previously, as both a litigator and Brandeis, certainly po::;sible. action figure for $19.99 complete with to the classroom, she co-founded the as a judge, gave way. 15 But the "Notorious RBG," as she has wire-rimmed glasses, gavel, and her Women's Rights Project at the American It was in dissent and often in cases come to be known, has become a fixture ever-present jabot.5 Civil Liberties Union in the 1970s. She decided 5 to 4, that Justice Ginsburg in the popular imagination. She has been And, speaking of jabots, the colorful argued six gender-discrimination cases began to emerge as a social media super­ the subject of numerous print profiles, is lace collars that adorn her black robes before the Supreme Court, winning star. More than mere rallying cries for frequently interviewed on television, and have become a subject of particular fas­ all but one.9 By the time President disappointed liberals, these dissent­ is a hit on the lecture circuit. A devoted cination. With her extensive collection Clinton appointed her in 1993, she was ing opinions began to take on a life of aficionado of the opera, she performed a of these jabots, the Justice has turned a being favorably compared to Thurgood their own. The decision in Ledbetter u. speaking role on the opening night of the fashion acces-sory into a political state­ Marshall.w Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. stands as a Washington National Opera's produc­ ment by wearing specific jabots when Part of her appeal lies in her engag­ case in point.16 tion of Donizetti's The Daughter of the announcing majority or dissenting opin­ ing personal life which is filled with At issue in Ledbetter was wheth­ Regiment.l The Justice is as ubiquitous ions from the bench.6 Little wonder that both heartbreak and happiness. The er the 180-day statute of limitations as she is brilliant. in 2012 Glamour Magazine named her daughter of Jewish immigrants from in an equal-pay lawsuit begins to toll Earlier this year a documentary on one of their ''Women of the Year."7 Flatbush, her mother died from cancer when the employer makes a discrimina­ her life, RBG, premiered at the Sundance At first glance, she is the most unlike­ the day before she graduated from high tory compensation decision or the date Film Festival to effusive reviews and ly of media sensations. She radiates an school. Celia Bader would always be an of the plaintiffs most recent paycheck.17 grossed nearly $14 million at the box-of­ intelligence and a dignity that seem from inspiration to her daughter, as would the Justice Ginsburg had intimate knowl­ fice.2 On the Basis of Sex, a feature a bygone era. Yet it is this same soft-spo­ Justice's ''life's partner," the renowned edge of such matters: when she was a film starring as a young ken quality that strikes a chord with tax attorney Martin.Ginsburg.n Married law professor at Rutgers, she was paid Ruth Bader Ginsburg, is scheduled to contemporary audiences. When asked for more than half a century, theirs was less than her male counterparts because be released on Christmas day. And if how she feels about having her name an enviable union of equals that was she had a husband who was a partner at that were not enough, there is Kate linked with the rapper The Notorious decades ahead of its time. Marty, who a New York law firm.lB McKinnon's lively impression of her on B.I.G., she delightfully observed that was known for his good cheer and cook­ Justice Ginsberg saw the majority's Saturday Night Live or the Justice her­ since they were both born and bred in ing, was her fiercest supporter. decision as a "cramped" interpretation self demonstrating her exercise regimen Brooklyn, they had a lot in common.s On the Court, she has been a thought­ of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, to late-night television host Stephen Justice Ginsburg's unlikely rise to ful voice who speaks as forcefully as she "incompatible with the statute's broad Colbert. pop culture phenomenon can be attribut­ does elegantly. Her opinions are marked remedial purpose."19 She stated that her When it comes to the written word, ed to many factors. Some of them are by their lucidity, their reasoning, and colleagues either were not comprehend­ one could/ fill a bookshelf with titles rooted in her much-deserved reputation their ability to speak directly to the ing or being indifferent to "the insidious ranging from learned legal studies of as a trailblazer. Her story demonstrates human consequences of the issues before way in which women can be victims her jurisprudence to children's coloring not only the capabilities of an excep­ the Court. An opinion from Justice of pay discrimination."zo She concluded books. Her own tome, My Own Words, tionally gifted individual, but, of equal Ginsburg is characterized by high-end her written dissent by forcefully noting a collection of her writings and speech­ importance, the advancement of women legal analysis expressed in clear, concise that "the ball is in Congress' court .... [T] es, was a New York Times Best Seller. ip. our profession, as well as American language that lawyer and layman alike he Legislature may act to correct this A new comprehensive biography, Ruth tSociety as a whole. can appreciate. Court's parsimonious reading of Tittle Bader Ginsburg: A Life, by Jane Sherron AJ,though Justice Ginsburg graduat­ Perhaps her majority opinion m VIl."z1 de Hart, was just published by Knopf. ed first in her class from Columbia United States u Virginia can serve as That was in 2007. Two years later, But it was Notorious RBG: The Life and Law School in 11959,/ no law firm in the shining example of her work as Congress amended the 1964 Civil Rights Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg by Irin Manhattan would offer her a job. a federal judge.12 In this 1996 deci­ Act with the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Carmon and Shana Knizhnik, that truly Justice Felix Frankfurter refused to hire sion, the Virginia Military Institute, the Act, which automatically resets the180- marked her arrival on the cultural land­ her--{)r any woman- as a law clerk. last all-male state-funded college in the day statute of limitations "each time scape. An eclectic hagiography, the book Ultimately, Judge Edmund L. Palmieri country, was forced to accept women wages, benefits, or other compensation grew out of a Tumblr of the same name from the Southern District of New York cadets whom it had previously denied is paid."22 created by Ms. Knizhnik. was persuaded to offer her a clerkship, admission. Applying the Fourteenth Beyond the law, her dissents also T-shirts, memes, bobble heads, lapel although she was a mother with a child Amendment's Equal Protection Clause, launched her legend. A new generation pins, coffee mugs, and even tattoos are at home. That child was her daughter, the Court invalidated all laws, both of law students found themselves in all emblazoned with the Justice's like­ Jane Ginsburg, who today is a noted law federal and state, which, in Justice the writings of this opera-loving octo­ ness. The slogan "You can't spell truth professor at Columbia. Ginsburg's telling prose, deny "women, genarian jurist who was old enough without Ruth'' is everywhere and on Undaunted by the rampant sexism of simply because they are women, full to be their grandmother. Embraced by just about everything imaginable.a For the day, hers has been a career for the citizenship status-equal opportunity to the more sophisticated among us, there ages. She first carved out a place for her- aspire, achieve, participate in and con- See GINSBURG, Page 25 Nassau Lawyer • November 2018 • 25

. Place two to three ice cubes in each of two glasses. 9. Library at Washington & Lee University School 17. Johanna L. Grossman, The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Combined the rum, brandy, orange juice, and car· of Law, Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A Reading List Argu­ Pay Act of 2009: President Obama's First Signed GINSBURG ... damom in a lidded container. Shake vigorously and ments Before the Supreme Court, updated January Bill Restores Essential Protection Against Pay Dis­ Continued From Page 10 pour equal amounts into the glasses. Slightly twist 24, 2017, htps://libguides.wlu.edu. crimination, (February 13, 2009) supreme.findlaw. the orange slices to extract a few drops of orange 10. Ruth Bader Ginsburg with Mary Harnett and com. juice into the liquid, then place a slice on the rim of tech-savvy millennials, the newly chris­ Wendy W. Williams, My Own Words, 116 (1st ed. 18. Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik, Notorious each glass. Place one slightly crushed mint leaf in 2016). RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg tened "Notorious RBG" came to life. each glass, stir and serve. 11. Id. 47 (1st ed. 2015). Ruth Bader Ginsburg began to exercise 5. Angele Morris, RBG Action Figure Launched 12. United States v. Virginia, 518 U.S. 515 (1996) 19. Ledbetter, 550 U.S. at 661 (Ginsburg, J. dis­ Through Copious Crowdfunding, New York Law 13. Id. at 532. senting). an influence that extended far beyond Journal, August 10, 2018, p. 2. 20. Bench Announcement in Ledbetter v. Goodyear the staid, bound volumes containing the 6. Emily McClure, All of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's 14. Frontiero v. Richardson, 411 U.S. 618 (1973). United States Reports. Jabots, From Her Statement-Making Collar to Her 15. Paul Richter, Clinton Picks Moderate Judge Tire & Rubber Co, Tuesday, 29, 2007, contained My Ruth Bader Ginsburg For High Court: Judiciary: Own Words, 287. It is safe to say that no justice has Sassy Beaded Accessories, Bustle (May 6, 2015) www.bustle.com. President Calls The Former Women's Rights Activist 21. Ledbetter, 50 at 661 (Ginsburg, J. dissenting) been the subject of more popular interest 7. Debra Cassens Weiss, Ginsburg Named One of A Healer And Consensus Builder. Her Nomination 22. Johanna L. Grossman, The Lilly Ledbetter Fair and, yes, adulation. When she makes Glamour Magazine's Women of the Year, ABA Jour­ Is Expected To Win Easy Approval, Los Angeles Pay Act of 2009: President Obama's First Signed a public misstep, as she did during the nal (November 12, 2012) www.abajournal.com. Times (June 15, 1993) article.latimes.com. Bill Restores Essential Protection Against Pay Dis­ 8. RBG (2018), a film directed and produced by 16. Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., 550 crimination, (February 13, 2009) supreme.findlaw. 2016 presidential campaign, her sincere Betsy West and Julie Cohen. U.S. 618 (2007). com. acknowledgment of the error was accept­ ed with good grace and the recognition that an icon is also mortal. The pop culture trappings that sur­ round the Justice pale in comparison to the substance that the woman rep­ resents. Hers is one of the rare instances where the reality far exceeds the imag­ ery. Never afraid to speak her mind or to take a stand, her life thus far has been exceptionally well-lived, and rich in achievements, not just accolades. And herein lies the greatest single reason for all the public fascination, even for conservatives who are at odds with her judicial philosophy. After all, if Justice Scalia and Justice Ginsburg can become the best of friends, then there is hope for us all in these polarized times. Political differences aside, her story resonates because she is an authentic human being who through her life's work has made a tangible difference in the life of the nation. And she did so with an appealing combination of intellect, elegance, and commitment. Rudy Carmenaty is a Deputy County Attorney and is the Director of Legal Services for the Nassau County Department of Social Services.

1. Anne Midgette, Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Opera Debut Brings Relevance To WNO, Washington Post (November 13, 2016) www.washingtonpost.com. 2. Box Office Mojo at www.boxofficemojo.com. 3. Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik, Notorious RBG: The Life and Tines of Ruth Bader Ginsburg 6 (1st ed. 2015). 4. Ronnie Fein, Ruth Bader Ginger Cocktail (April 16, 2015) www.ronniefein.com, the recipe for the cocktail is • 4-6 ice cubes • 3 ounces dark rum • 1 ounce ginger liqueur or brandy • 2 teaspoons orange juice • 2-3 pinches ground cardamom • 2 slices of orange • 2 mint leaves, slightly crushed