Samuel Alito Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Date of Birth: 01.04.1950 Country: USA

1. Samuel Alito: Early Life and Education
2. Army Service and Legal Career
3. Government Service and Federal Judiciary
4. Supreme Court Nomination and Confirmation
5. Personal Life

Samuel Alito: Early Life and Education

Samuel Anthony Alito, Jr. was born in Trenton, New Jersey, in 1950, to Samuel A. Alito, Sr., an Italian immigrant, and his wife, Rose, both teachers. Alito grew up in Hamilton Township, graduating from Steinert High School in 1968.

He went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs in 1972. Alito continued his education at Yale Law School, where he served as an editor of the Yale Law Journal and earned his Juris Doctor degree in 1975.

Army Service and Legal Career

During his time at Princeton, Alito participated in the Army ROTC program and spent six weeks at Fort Knox, Kentucky. After his senior year, he traveled to Italy to research Italian jurisprudence for his thesis.

After graduating from Princeton, Alito served in the United States Army Reserve with the rank of lieutenant. Upon completing law school in 1975, he entered active duty, which he served from September to December of that year. By 1980, he had risen to the rank of captain.

Alito began his legal career in Newark, New Jersey, from 1976 to 1977. He unsuccessfully applied to clerk for the Supreme Court during this time. From 1977 to 1981, Aliti served as Assistant United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey, where he prosecuted drug trafficking and organized crime cases.

Government Service and Federal Judiciary

In 1981, Alito joined the Office of the Solicitor General as an assistant to REX E. Lee. He went on to serve as Deputy Assistant Attorney General under Edwin Meese from 1985 to 1987.

From 1987 to 1990, Aliti served as the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey. On February 20, 1990, President George H. W. Bush nominated him to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. His nomination was unanimously confirmed by the Senate on April 27, 1990, and he took office three days later.

Supreme Court Nomination and Confirmation

On July 1, 2005, President George W. Bush nominated Alito to the Supreme Court to succeed the retiring Sandra Day O'Connor. Aliito, who had spent 15 years on the Third Circuit, was known for his conservative views, potentially shifting the balance of the Court.

Alito's confirmation hearings were held from January 9 to 13, 2006. On January 31 of that year, the Senate voted to confirm Samuel Alito Jr. to the Supreme Court.

Personal Life

Alito married Martha-Ann Alito in 1985, and they have two children together. They lived in West Coldwell, New Jersey, until Alito's appointment to the Supreme Court. Upon joining the Court, he moved to a residence in Washington D.C.