Brett Kavanaugh

Described as

U.S. Supreme Court justice since 2018 (born 1965)

Other names

Brett Michael Kavanaugh, Brett M. Kavanaugh, Justice Kavanaugh

Born

February 12, 1965 · 2 references

Born in

Washington, D.C. · 1 reference

Name at birth

Brett Michael Kavanaugh

Citizen of

United States

Occupation

judge · 1 reference; politician; lawyer · 1 reference; jurist · 1 reference

Positions held

Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (2006–2018); Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (2018–) · 1 reference

Political party

Republican Party

Worked for

Georgetown University Law Center; Yale Law School · 1 reference; Williams & Connolly (1990) · 1 reference; Kirkland & Ellis; United States Department of Justice

Education

Yale Law School (–1990); Yale College (–1987); Georgetown Preparatory School · 1 reference; Mater Dei School; Ezra Stiles College

Spouse

Ashley Estes Kavanaugh (2004–) · 1 reference

Wikipedias with a page

47

Wikidata item Q4962244 (wikidata.org/wiki/Q4962244), public domain (CC0). Copied November 13, 2026.

Brett Michael Kavanaugh (; born February 12, 1965) is an American lawyer and jurist serving as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated by President Donald Trump on July 9, 2018, and has served since October 6, 2018. He was previously a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 2006 to 2018.
Kavanaugh studied history at Yale University, where he joined the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity. After graduating from Yale Law School, he served as a law clerk for Judge Ken Starr of the D.C. Circuit. After Starr left the D.C. Circuit to become the head of the Office of Independent Counsel, Kavanaugh assisted him with investigations concerning President Bill Clinton, including drafting the Starr Report recommending Clinton's impeachment. He joined the Bush administration as White House staff secretary and was a central figure in its efforts to identify and confirm judicial nominees. President George W. Bush nominated Kavanaugh to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 2003. His confirmation hearings were contentious and stalled for three years over charges of partisanship. Kavanaugh was confirmed to the District of Columbia Circuit in May 2006.
President Trump nominated Kavanaugh to the United States Supreme Court on July 9, 2018, to fill the position vacated by Justice Anthony Kennedy. Before his United States Senate confirmation proceedings began, Christine Blasey Ford accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her in the early 1980s. Three other women also accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct. None of the accusations were corroborated by eyewitness testimony, and Kavanaugh denied them. The Senate Judiciary Committee held a supplemental hearing over the allegations and voted 11–10 along party lines to advance the confirmation to a full Senate vote. On October 6, the full Senate confirmed Kavanaugh by a vote of 50–48.
Since the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 2020, Kavanaugh has come to be regarded as a swing vote on the Court. He was the target of an assassination plot in June 2022; the suspect had hoped to disrupt the rulings in Dobbs and Bruen.

Born, in its opening lines

February 12, 1965

From the Wikipedia article “Brett Kavanaugh” (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brett_Kavanaugh), by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Copied November 13, 2026; not changed.