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Amy Coney Barrett’s Big Book Deal Is Called Bad Optics for the Supreme Court

  • Newest justice reportedly will get record $2 million advance
  • Optics of deal ‘problematic,’ judicial ethics expert says
Amy Coney Barrett
Amy Coney BarrettPhotographer: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/Bloomberg

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s reported $2 million book deal is drawing criticism from legal experts who say its size and timing create bad optics for a court that is already in the political crosshairs.

The advance, first reported by Politico, would be the largest ever for a Supreme Court justice, topping the $1.5 million Justice Clarence Thomas received for his 2007 memoir and the $1.175 million advance Justice Sonia Sotomayor got for hers, published in 2013.