As the Senate Judiciary Committee debates Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination, we write as faculty members of Yale Law School, from which Judge Kavanaugh graduated, to urge that the Senate conduct a fair and deliberate confirmation process. With so much at stake for the Supreme Court and the nation, we are concerned about a rush to judgment that threatens both the integrity of the process and the public’s confidence in the Court.

Where, as here, a sexual assault has been alleged against an individual nominated for a lifetime appointment in a position of public trust, a partisan hearing alone cannot be the forum to determine the truth of the matter. Allegations of sexual assault require a neutral factfinder and an investigation that can ascertain facts fairly. Those at the FBI or others tasked with such an investigation must have adequate time to investigate facts. Fair process requires evidence from all parties with direct knowledge and consultation of experts when evaluating such evidence. In subsequent hearings, all of those who testify, and particularly women testifying about sexual assault, must be treated with respect.

The confirmation process must always be conducted, and appointments made, in a manner that gives Americans reason to trust the Supreme Court. Some questions are so fundamental to judicial integrity that the Senate cannot rush past them without undermining the public’s confidence in the Court. This is particularly so for an appointment that will yield a deciding vote on women’s rights and myriad other questions of immense consequence in American lives.



Amy Kapczynski

Reva Siegel

Doug NeJaime

Muneer Ahmad

Owen Fiss

Harold Hongju Koh

Robert Post

Abbe Gluck

Judith Resnik

Dennis E. Curtis

Scott Shapiro

Steven Duke

Gideon Yaffe

Paul W. Kahn

Doug Kysar

Bruce Ackerman

John Fabian Witt

Claire Priest

J.L. Pottenger, Jr.

Stephen Wizner

Cristina Rodríguez

W. Michael Reisman

Fiona Doherty

Alvin K. Klevorick

Oona Hathaway

Jack Balkin

David Singh Grewal

Mike Wishnie

Issa Kohler-Hausmann

James Silk

James Forman, Jr.

Taisu Zhang

Monica Bell

Miriam Gohara

Carol Rose

Anika Singh Lemar

Zachary Liscow

Marisol Orihuela

Daniel Markovits

Vicki Schultz

Lea Brilmayer

Yair Listokin

Tom Tyler

Ian Ayres

Tracey Meares

Jean Koh Peters

Susan Rose-Ackerman

Anne Alstott

Teresa M. Miguel-Stearns

Robert W. Gordon