Today is the First Monday in October, which, as Supreme Court watchers know, is the start of the High Court’s new Term. The Court will, again, tackle issues that will shape the very fabric of life in America. Given the import of nine individuals, it’s worth looking at exactly who has a lifetime appointment to the High Court — and who they choose to associate with.
The Intercept’s Shawn Musgrave published an in-depth look at the relationship between Justice Samuel Alito and Mark Martin.
But first, the seemingly obvious question, who is Mark Martin? The dean of High Point University’s law school was previously Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina, Associate Judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals, dean and professor of law at Regent University School of Law… and he advised Donald Trump on how to overturn the results of the 2020 election. That’s right, Martin was the brains behind the theory that the Vice President could just choose not to certify the election results on January 6th. Trump told Mike Pence he “had spoken with Mark Martin, the former chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court, who he said had told him that Mr. Pence had that power (to reject the Electoral College votes on January 6th 2021).” All of which resulted in effigies of Pence during the attempted coup that day.
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Even after Martin’s high-profile role in trying to subvert democracy by promulgating piss-poor legal takes, Alito was teaching a small seminar with him.
Just 20 days after the insurrection, Martin had another intimate audience with another powerful right-winger: He taught a three-day seminar on constitutional law with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito for Regent University Law School in Virginia, where Martin was the dean at the time.
In fact, for three years in a row, Alito taught “Select Issues in Constitutional Interpretation” with Martin.
By his own account, teaching with Alito is one of the pinnacles of Martin’s career.
Asked recently about the biggest challenges and rewards in moving from the judiciary into legal education, Martin highlighted that he “even was able to co-teach a law course with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sam Alito for three years in a row.” (In the same softball interview, Martin dodged questions about January 6, citing “confidentiality.”)
Martin’s online biography for the Federalist Society lists his seminars with Alito among many other achievements and honors. Martin recently added the Alito seminars to his bio on the High Point University website, where he has been law school dean since leaving Regent in 2022.
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As Gabe Roth, executive director of Fix the Court, said, “It was and continues to be a shock to the system knowing that the upper echelons of the legal community used their legal talents to subvert the will of the people and that Supreme Court justices of all people are friends with these individuals.”
This isn’t the first time Alito has made his controversial politics apparent. Though he blamed it on his wife, in the days following the insurrection Alito’s home was seen flying a flag favored by insurrectionists. And his vacation home on Long Beach Island, New Jersey, flew an “Appeal to Heaven” flag. The flag dates back to the Revolutionary War, but has seen a resurgence in popularity as a symbol of Christian nationalism and support for Donald Trump.
Alito was also caught on tape saying there are “fundamental things that really can’t be compromised” with the left. And that he thinks the country needs to return to a place of godliness.
But none of this will convince Alito to recuse himself when his clearly expressed political views come before the Court because he’s beyond shame.
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Mastodon @[email protected].