How do we choose our judges?

Retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, sitting Justice Stephen Breyer, and Georgetown Law Professor Viet Dinh sat down recently for a discussion about how the U.S. selects its judges. They spoke at the 2009 Aspen Ideas Festival in Aspen, Colorado.

Justice O'Connor was the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. She was appointed by President Ronald Reagan, and served on the court from 1981 until her retirement in 2006.

Stephen Breyer has been a Supreme Court justice since 1994, after being nominated by President Bill Clinton. Breyer previously served as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. He was also a professor at Harvard Law School for nearly three decades.

Viet Dinh is a law professor at Georgetown University Law Center. Dinh served as U.S. Assistant Attorney General for legal policy during President George W. Bush's first term, and he played a key role in selecting judges for district and circuit court appointments.

Their conversation was moderated by Sandy Levinson, a professor of law at the University of Texas.

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