Details about how U.S. Supreme Court justices made money over the past year were released Friday through the court’s financial disclosures.
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson receives gift ticket from Beyoncé, Judge Clarence Thomas reveals major Republican donor Harlan Crow Two Gifted Tours – Earlier this year, news reports about gifted tours put the judge in hot water.
Four of the judges revealed financial information related to the book deal.
Eight of the nine justices’ reports cover 2023, with Justice Samuel Alito requesting a 90-day extension for his report.
Supreme Court justices are required to disclose the status of gifts annually.
Judge Brown Jackson received four concert tickets worth more than $3,700 (more than £2,900) from Beyoncé.
Meanwhile, Judge Thomas revealed in this year’s report that he traveled with Mr Crow twice in 2019 – once to Bali and once to California. These itineraries have been added as revisions to previously disclosed information.
According to the report, this trip to California was to a “private club”, which may be an allusion to bohemian grove, a California club for the rich and powerful. Judge Thomas has reportedly visited the club in the past.
It was revealed that food and accommodation for both trips were gifted to Judge Thomas, but he did not include the exact monetary value of the trips.
ProPublica reported last year that a trip to Bali in 2019 could cost up to $500,000 (£403,000).
As part of the report, the nonprofit news site found that Justice Thomas accepted a sabbatical from real estate tycoon Mr Crow almost every year for two decades.
At the time of the news report, Judge Thomas countered that “such personal hospitality” does not need to be part of the annual disclosure.
Last year, scrutiny of the omission led to similar criticism of other judges.
On Friday, Justices Neil Gorsuch, Sonia Sotomayor, Brett Kavanaugh and Brown Jackson included book royalties as part of their financial disclosures.
Judge Brown-Jackson earned more than $893,000 (over £702,000) for a book advance on an as-yet-unpublished memoir.
Judge Kavanaugh has revealed he received $340,000 (£267,000) for his upcoming legal memoir.
