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New financial disclosures for eight Supreme Court Justices reveal the outside income and gifts they received in 2023 — and made reference to the gift scandal that has plagued conservative Justice Clarence Thomas.
Stricter ethics rules adopted in March 2023 require Supreme Court Justices to disclose more gifts, trips, and meals they may have accepted.
Among the gifts and income disclosed from last year, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said she got concert tickets from Beyoncé Knowles-Carter to the "Renaissance World Tour," with the four passes worth over $3,700.
Brown Jackson also reported $12,500 in gifted artwork for the justice's chambers.
The disclosures revealed other ways Justices are making money — including a hefty book deal advance for Brown Jackson from Penguin Random House worth nearly $900,000.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh also reported $340,000 in book royalty income, while Justice Neil Gorsuch reported $250,000 in royalty income from HarperCollins.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor pocketed nearly $2,000 for voicing a character in an animated TV show.
And while most of the Justices disclosed their investments in the stock market, Kavanaugh's report for 2023 showed none.
However, the most noteworthy gift on the disclosures wasn't one from last year.
In his 2023 disclosure, Justice Thomas amended his disclosures from 2019 to include luxury trips he received from billionaire Harlan Crow.
Thomas has been under fire in the past for accepting lavish vacations and gifts from the GOP megadonor; his report for 2023 now include references to two trips hosted by Crow in 2019 to Bali and Monte Rio, California.
Thomas has denied any conflict of interest, and Harlan Crow has said that the arch-conservative justice is simply a friend.
Thomas' last disclosure, made public in August 2023, mentioned Crow throughout, including flights, meals, and lodging he paid for on various trips.
Thomas' report this year also revealed he received two photo albums worth $2,000 from Terrence Giroux — the executive director of the Horatio Alger Association — and his wife, Barbara.
Alito is the only Justice for whom the Supreme Court did not publish a report today. He was granted a 90-day extension to file, according to the New York Times.
Alito is under his own scrutiny for flags displaying pro-Trump symbols that flew at his properties around the time of the January 6 riot in 2021. Alito has said his wife was responsible for putting the flags up and blamed a dispute with neighbors, though reports indicate the timeline doesn't add up.
