Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s ‘Listening to the Law’ will give readers an inside account of the court

NEW YORK (AP) — Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett has a book coming out in September that her publisher is billing as an invitation for “readers to see the Supreme Court through the lens of her experience.”

“Listening to the Law: Reflections on the Court and Constitution” will be released Sept. 9, according to Sentinel Books, a conservative imprint of Penguin Random House.

“In ‘Listening to the Law,’ Justice Barrett illuminates her role and daily life as a justice, touching on everything from her deliberation process to dealing with media scrutiny,” Friday’s announcement by Sentinel reads in part. “With the warmth and clarity that made her a popular law professor, she brings to life the making of the Constitution and lays out her approach to interpreting its text, inviting readers to wrestle with questions of originalism and to embrace the rich heritage of the Constitution.”

In a statement issued through Sentinel, Barrett said, “The process of judging, which happens behind closed doors, can seem like a mystery. It shouldn’t.”

Her signing with Sentinel was first reported in 2021, and financial documents released the following year showed Barrett receiving a $425,000 advance as part of a reported $2 million deal.

Other current justices have published books in recent years, including Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Justice Neil Gorsuch.

Barrett, 53, is the youngest member of the court, which she joined in 2020 just weeks after the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The third justice appointed by President Donald Trump, Barrett solidified a conservative majority that has overturned abortion rights, broadened religious rights and ended affirmative action in college admissions. Some of Barrett’s decisions have angered conservatives, including a recent case in which she was part of a 5-4 majority that rejected the Trump’s administration’s bid to freeze nearly $2 billion in foreign aid.

Barrett has openly advocated for a spirit of civil debate: She and Sotomayor, one of the court’s liberals, made a handful of joint public appearances i n 2024.

“I don’t think any of us has a ‘my way or the highway’ attitude,” Barrett told a conference of civics educators in Washington.