Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Biography, Legacy, and Life of the Notorious RBG

Tenure on Supreme Court: 27 years (1993–2020) ·
Age at death: 87 ·
Women on Court when appointed: Second ·
Cases argued before joining the Court: 6

Six facts about Ruth Bader Ginsburg, from her full name to the meaning behind her famous collars.

What Was So Special About Ruth Bader Ginsburg?

Early life and education

• Born March 15, 1933 in Brooklyn, New York to Celia and Nathan Bader (Supreme Court of the United States).
• Earned her B.A. from Cornell University, then attended Harvard Law School and received her LL.B. from Columbia Law School (Supreme Court of the United States).
• After graduating near the top of her Columbia Law class, she was turned down for numerous jobs because of her gender (Britannica).

Legal career before the Supreme Court

• Clerked for Judge Edmund L. Palmieri of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York from 1959 to 1961 (Supreme Court of the United States).
• Taught at Rutgers University School of Law (1963–1972) and Columbia Law School (1972–1980), becoming the first tenured female professor at Columbia (Britannica).
• Co-founded the ACLU Women’s Rights Project in 1971 and served as ACLU General Counsel from 1973 to 1980 (Supreme Court of the United States).
• As director of the project, she argued six landmark cases on gender equality before the Supreme Court (Britannica).

Supreme Court tenure

• Appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in 1980 by President Jimmy Carter (Clinton White House Archives).
• Nominated to the Supreme Court by President Bill Clinton in 1993 and took her seat on August 10, 1993 (Supreme Court of the United States).
• She was the second woman ever appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court (Supreme Court of the United States).
• Served more than 27 years before her death (Supreme Court of the United States).

Gender equality impact

• Ginsburg’s litigation strategy deliberately challenged laws that treated men and women differently, framing gender discrimination as a violation of the Equal Protection Clause. She won five of the six cases she argued before the Supreme Court (Britannica).

“I ask no favor for my sex. All I ask of our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks.”

— Ruth Bader Ginsburg, quoted widely

What Famous Words Did Ruth Bader Ginsburg Always Say?

I dissent

No phrase is more closely tied to Ginsburg than “I dissent.” She deployed it in several major opinions, most famously in Bush v. Gore (2000) and Shelby County v. Holder (2013). The phrase became a rallying cry for those who saw her as the Court’s moral anchor. (Supreme Court of the United States – Bush v. Gore dissent)

When I’m sometimes asked ‘When will there be enough women on the court?’ I say ‘When there are nine’

Ginsburg offered this line in a 2015 interview at Georgetown University. It captured her belief that women’s representation on the bench should be taken for granted—not treated as exceptional. (Georgetown Law)

Fight for the things you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you

This dictum was a hallmark of Ginsburg’s public speeches. It reflected her conviction that persuasion, not confrontation, was the only durable tool for change. (Britannica)

The pattern: Each quote served a strategic purpose in her broader fight for equality.

What Happened When Ruth Bader Ginsburg Died?

Circumstances of death

• Ginsburg died on September 18, 2020, at age 87 (Supreme Court of the United States).
• The cause of death was complications of metastatic pancreas cancer (Supreme Court of the United States).

Public reaction

• Thousands gathered for vigils outside the Supreme Court building (NPR).
• She became the first woman and the first Jewish person to lie in state in the U.S. Capitol (The New York Times).

“She was an icon of justice and equality. Her passing leaves a hole that cannot be filled.”

— President Bill Clinton

Legacy after death

The vacancy created by her death became a central issue in the 2020 presidential election, and her successor, Justice Amy Coney Barrett, was confirmed just weeks later. Ginsburg’s influence persists through the legal framework she shaped and the army of lawyers she inspired.

The implication: The fight over her seat revealed how much of her legacy was still contested.

What Did Ruth Bader Ginsburg Do for LGBTQ?

Ginsburg never litigated an LGBTQ case, but her equal‑protection jurisprudence opened the door for them. As a justice, she voted in favor of same‑sex marriage in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) and wrote a notable dissent in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission (2018) arguing that religious liberty should not come at the expense of equal treatment. (Obergefell majority opinion; Masterpiece Cakeshop dissent)

“The Court’s refusal to acknowledge that the same‑sex couple’s dignity was violated is, in my view, a serious error.”

— Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Masterpiece Cakeshop dissent

What this means: Her equal-protection framework extended far beyond the original gender cases.

How Many Husbands Did Ruth Ginsburg Have?

Husband: Martin D. Ginsburg

• She married Martin D. Ginsburg in 1954 (Supreme Court of the United States).
• Martin was a prominent tax attorney who supported her career; he died in 2010.

Children

The couple had two children: Jane (born 1955) and James (born 1965). Jane Ginsburg is a law professor at Columbia Law School. (Supreme Court of the United States)

Religion and Jewish identity

Ginsburg was Jewish and identified strongly with her Jewish heritage. She was the first Jewish woman to serve on the Supreme Court. (Jewish Virtual Library)

Ethnicity and real name

She was born Joan Ruth Bader to Jewish immigrant parents (father from Russia, mother from Austria). The name “Ruth” was used by her family. (Britannica)

Famous collars

Ginsburg famously wore a “dissent collar” when reading dissenting opinions and a “majority opinion collar” when writing for the majority. The collars became a cultural symbol of her judicial identity. (NPR)

Views on Israel

Ginsburg made several public statements expressing support for Israel’s right to exist while advocating for a two‑state solution. She also taught at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. (Haaretz)

The catch: Her personal choices were as intentional as her legal ones.

Timeline

What this means: Ginsburg’s life was marked by steady progress and pivotal moments.

“In every good marriage, it helps sometimes to be a little deaf.”

— Ruth Bader Ginsburg, recounting her mother-in-law’s advice

“Women’s rights are an essential part of the overall human rights agenda.”

— Ruth Bader Ginsburg, speech at Rutgers University

For younger lawyers and activists who grew up with a Court where gender equality was a given, Ginsburg’s career is a reminder that every win was hard‑fought. The question now is how to protect those gains in a Court that no longer has her voice.

Frequently asked questions

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