As rumors of his retirement swirl in political circles, Justice Anthony Kennedy wraps up his 29th year on the Supreme Court without an announcement that he's stepping down.
But the 80-year-old justice could still declare he's retiring later this summer, as former Justice Sandra Day O'Connor did in 2005. That year, the Court adjourned June 27, and she issued a press release on July 1.
A conservative who can lean moderate in cases that concern individual freedoms, Kennedy has often provided the deciding fifth vote on cases without a clear majority. As someone who has frequently voted to support women's and LGBT rights, Kennedy's absence could definitively swing the Supreme Court to the right.
Here is a look at the Supreme Court justice who often shifted the balance on some of the court's most controversial cases — so much so that many have even called it "Kennedy's Court."
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Anthony McLeod Kennedy was born in Sacramento, California in 1936. Kennedy grew up with parents who were politically active, and often met well known lawmakers as a young boy.
Source: Biography.com
After finishing college at Stanford, Kennedy graduated from Harvard Law School, spent a year in the army, and then went on to teach constitutional law at the University of the Pacific in California.
Sources: SCOTUS, Biography.com
A devout Roman Catholic, Kennedy has often been described as a "goody-goody" in his early years. While on a summer trip to Europe, Kennedy once kept a bottle of whisky given to him by his father intact throughout the trip.
Source: U.S. News
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'Kennedy's Court': Meet 80-year-old Supreme Court justice Anthony Kennedy, who's rumored to retire soon posted first on http://lawpallp.tumblr.com
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