(Headline USA) Mired in a potential ethics scandal related to a reported book-selling scheme, Fox News uncovered financial documents that showed Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s net worth has skyrocketed since being appointed to the bench in 2009.
In 2007, two years before former President Barack Obama nominated Sotomayor to join the Supreme Court, Sotomayor’s net worth was between $50,001 and $115,000, according to financial disclosures. She had only two reported assets: a checking account and a savings account.
In 2008, Sotomayor’s assets were about the same, totaling between $15,000 to $65,000.
But in 2021, Sotomayor’s financial disclosure revealed her investments totaled betwen $15 million and $6.4 million. Last year, her investments were between $1.6 million and $6.6 million.
Currently, justices on the Supreme Court make $285,400, except for the chief justice, who makes about $300,000.
The sharp increase in Sotomayor’s wealth raises serious questions about where she’s receiving extra income. One source is her book deals, including her memoir and several children’s books, which have made her at least $3.7 million and provide six-figure royalty payments annually.
However, even this raises ethical concerns given a recent report that Sotomayor’s staff pressured schools and universities to buy her books in bulk.
Another report from the Associated Press revealed Sotomayor’s publisher, Random House, also pressed public institutions that wanted to host Sotomayor for a speech or lecture to commit to buying a certain number of copies beforehand.
Sotomayor has not recused herself from cases involving Random House.
In a statement, the Supreme Court said it works with the justices and their staff to ensure they are “complying with judicial ethics guidance for such visits.”
“When [Sotomayor] is invited to participate in a book program, Chambers staff recommends the number of books based on the size of the audience so as not to disappoint attendees who may anticipate books being available at an event,” the court said. “Chambers staff assist the justices in complying with judicial ethics guidance for such visits, including guidance relating to judges; publications.”
