Kagan, Elena (1960-…), became an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States in 2010. President Barack Obama named her to replace retiring Justice John Paul Stevens on the court. Prior to her appointment, Kagan had served as Obama’s solicitor general of the United States, a position within the U.S. Department of Justice. The solicitor general represents the federal government in cases before the Supreme Court.
Kagan was born on April 28, 1960, in New York City. She received a bachelor’s degree from Princeton University in 1981 and a master’s degree from the University of Oxford in 1983. She received a J.D. degree from Harvard Law School in 1986. She served as a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall in 1987 and 1988. From 1989 to 1991, Kagan worked as a lawyer in private practice. From 1991 to 1997, she held a professorship at the University of Chicago Law School.
From 1995 to 1999, Kagan served in a number of positions in the administration of President Bill Clinton. She then taught law at Harvard. From 2003 to 2009, Kagan served as dean of the Law School.
