Some U.S. Supreme Court justices have reported their net worth in tens of millions of dollars. Brett Kavanaugh has the least net worth among the eight justices. He has a modest net worth of $1 million.
He was nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court by President Donald Trump in 2018. Kavanaugh has served as an Associate Justice of the Court since October 6, 2018. Before the Supreme Court, Kavanaugh was a U.S. Circuit Judge of the Court of Appeals, District of Colombia.
Explore the career of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, his earnings, and his net worth.
Brett Kavanaugh’s Biography
Early Life
Brett Michael Kavanaugh is an American lawyer and jurist born on February 12, 1965. He was born in the United States capital, Washington, D.C.
Brett is the only child of Martha Gamble and Everett Edward Kavanaugh Jr.
Both of his parents are of Irish descent and staunch Catholics. His father was a lawyer. He was the president of the Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Association as president. He served the association for 20 years.
Brett’s mother, Martha Kavanaugh, taught history in high school in the 1960s and the 1970s. In 1978, she graduated from American University with a Juris Doctor degree. She was a Circuit Court judge in Montgomery County, Maryland, for six years from 1995.
Education
Brett Kavanaugh grew up in Bethesda, Maryland. He attended Georgetown Preparatory School. He was two years ahead of Gorsuch at the prep school. Brett was active in sports and played for the basketball team as the captain. He also played for the school’s football team as a wide receiver and cornerback.
After prep school, Brett Kavanaugh enrolled at Yale University. His grandfather, Everett Edward Kavanaugh, Sr., graduated from Yale.
Brett tried several times to qualify for the Yale Bulldogs men’s basketball team. He ended up playing for the junior varsity team for two years. He wrote sports articles for the Yale Daily News. He was a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity. Kavanaugh graduated from Yale University with a B.A cum laude in history.
Kavanaugh then joined the Yale Law School. He joined the Yale Law Journal as the notes editor. Brett earned his Juris Doctor in 1990 and began his career in government service the same year.
Personal Life
Brett Kavanaugh is a married man. His wife, Ashley Estes Kavanaugh, worked for former president George W. Bush. They married in 2004, have two children, and live in Maryland’s Chevy Chase Section Five.
Brett Kavanaugh ran the 2010 and 2015 marathons as a guest. He has also participated in other shorter distances, such as 5 to 10 miles.
Kavanaugh was born and raised a roman catholic and still holds on to the faith. He is a regular reader at Alabama’s Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament at Hanceville. He has participated in community church programs such as feeding the homeless. He has also served as a tutor at Washington Jesuit Academy.
The Career of Brett Kavanaugh
Immediately after earning his Juris Doctor, Brett clerked for Judge Walter King Stapleton. Stapleton was a judge in the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He then moved to the ninth circuit to work for Judge Alex Kozinski. He went on to work as a summer associate for Munger, Tolles & Olson.
Next in line was Supreme Court Judge Anthony Kennedy. Kavanaugh then went to work for the United States Solicitor General Kenneth W. Starr. Kavanaugh was an Associate Counsel in the Office of the Independent Counsel.
Between 1997 and 1998, Brett worked at the law firm Kirkland & Ellis, a private law firm. He returned to Solicitor General Ken Starr and resumed his role of Associate Council. In 1990, he returned to private practice, rejoining Kirkland & Ellis as a partner.
Brett Kavanaugh joined George W. Bush’s legal team in 2000 during the Bush v. Gore hearings. Kavanaugh and his fellow lawyers won the case, and the Florida vote recount was stopped.
U.S. Circuit Judge: 2006 – 2018
After the Bush v. Gore case was settled and Bush inaugurated, Kavanaugh remained an associate to Alberto Gonzales, a White House Counsel. He proceeded to become an assistant to the president and a White House staff secretary.
In 2003, President Bush nominated him to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Though his nomination remained pending at the U.S. Senate for nearly three years, it was approved in 2006.
During his time as a Circuit Judge in the District of Columbia, Brett Kavanaugh wrote decisions that opposed abortion rights. He also opposed such issues as environmental regulations and the Affordable Care Act.
U.S. Supreme Court: 2018 – Present
President Donald Trump nominated Brett Kavanaugh as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court on July 9, 2018. The nomination was followed by a contentious hearing by the Senate Judiciary Committee. Brett faced many allegations of sexual assault.
Among his accusers was Christine Blasey Ford, whose case went back to their teenage years. She accused Kavanaugh and his friend of locking her in a bedroom before groping and unrobing her. The FBI launched an investigation into the case but dropped it with orders from the White House.
Eventually, the Senate approved Kavanaugh’s nomination. His approval recorded one of the narrowest margins of 50-48.
Brett wrote his first Supreme Court opinion in January 2019 during the case of Henry Schein, Inc. v. Archer & White Sales, Inc. He also joined the Supreme Court’s liberal judges during the Garza v. Idaho in February 2019. In other cases, Brett has issued rulings against abortion rights and LGBTQ rights. He has also ruled against certain voting rights.
Take a Look at What You Should Know About Brett Kavanaugh’s Life and Record:
Brett Kavanaugh’s Salary
Brett Kavanaugh joined the Supreme Court with the fewest recorded assets. His net worth stands at $1 million. Before the Supreme Court, he worked in many federal government offices as a staff lawyer.
In 2018, a report showed that Brett earned an annual salary of $220,600 as a Circuit Judge. He also earned an extra $27,000 from teaching at Harvard Law School. The National Taxpayer Union Foundation shows that Brett earns an annual salary of $285,400.
Political Views of Justice Kavanaugh
The Washington Post published a statistical analysis showing Brett Kavanaugh as a conservative.
The Judicial Common Space shows Brett is second after Clarence Thomas in conservativeness. The Judicial Common Space system compares justices’ ideologies against the presidents who nominated them.
How Does Brett Kavanaugh Spend His Money?
According to Brett Kavanaugh’s financial disclosure forms, he does not have outstanding mortgages. The Associate Justice spends a lot of money on tickets to baseball games. He was under scrutiny by the Democrats in 2018 over a pile-up of credit card debt buying baseball tickets.
Brett Kavanaugh is a staunch catholic, born and raised. He supports charity causes of the catholic church in the United States.
Brett Kavanaugh’s Assets
The Center for Responsive Politics shows that Kavanaugh is the poorest justice in the U.S. Supreme Court. In his 2017 financial disclosure reports, Brett recorded a net worth of $942,000. This included $480,000 in his government retirement accounts and $400,000 in home equity.
Before the U.S. Supreme Court, Brett earned $220,600 from his federal judge job. He earned $27,490 more lecturing at Harvard Law School. His net worth has since grown to $1 million.
According to records going back to 2016, Brett Kavanaugh has assets totaling $65,000. This does not include cars or mortgage loans. According to Brett’s recent financial reports, he only has one house. His home at Chevy Chase Section Five, Maryland, is valued at around $1.3 million and has no mortgage.
Public servants are not obliged to record assets that are not a conflict of interest. As such, Brett Kavanaugh has not recorded any car collection.
FAQs
Who Did Judge Kavanaugh Replace?
Brett M. Kavanaugh was nominated in July 2018 to replace Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy. Justice Kennedy was nominated to the Supreme Court by President Ronald Reagan. He served the Court for over three decades from 1988.
What Are the Complaints Against Kavanaugh?
During his confirmation hearings, Brett Kavanaugh was impulsive and unwilling to respond to questions surrounding his alleged sexual assault. As a result, lawyers, doctors, professors, and concerned citizens filed 83 complaints. The complaints included disrespectful comments Brett made to senators.
Who is Brett Kavanaugh’s Wife Now?
Brett Kavanaugh married Ashley Estes Kavanaugh in 2004. She is the former personal aide to President George W. Bush.
How Long Has Brett Kavanaugh Been on the Supreme Court?
Brett Kavanaugh has served on the United States Supreme Court for four years and 11 months. He has been on the job since October 6, 2018.
Conclusion
Brett Michael Kavanaugh is an American lawyer and the United States Supreme Court Associate Justice. Though he comes from an affluent family of lawyers, Brett is the poorest of all eight justices of the Supreme Court. His net worth currently stands at $1 million.
