9 min read
This week, Supreme Court confirmation hearings got underway for Judge Amy Coney Barrett, President Trump’s controversial, last-minute pick to fill Justice Ruth Ginsburg’s seat. Barrett’s pro-life stance and potential willingness to overturn Roe v. Wade has been the main topic of discussion. But where does she stand when it comes to business interests — for big and small companies — and protections for employees? Or contract workers?
A recent study found that one-third of Americans now work in the $1.2 trillion freelance economy — a figure that’s ballooned 22 percent since 2019. On November 10, the Supreme Court will hear arguments on the fate of the Affordable Care Act, which provides health insurance to millions of Americans who don’t get it through their employers, as well as small-business owners (with under 50 employees) who use the public marketplace to provide insurance to their employees. According to the Commonwealth Fund, “More than 5.7 million small-business employees or self-employed workers are enrolled in the ACA marketplaces; more than half of all ACA marketplace enrollees are small-business owners, self-employed individuals, or small-business employees.” In 2017 Barrett wrote that she disagreed with Chief Justice John Roberts’ decision to uphold the ACA, and if she’s confirmed before the election it’s likely she’ll have a say in the case.
It’s widely understood that the current Supreme Court is “pro-business.” But this traditionally translates to pro-corporate business, and according to an analysis done by Rocket Lawyer, Barrett is set to become the court’s most “pro-business” justice. The analysis looked at Supreme Court opinions from 2018 to now, “in cases where business interests are in conflict with consumer, employee, or other non-corporate interests.” Then, Rocket Lawyer looked at Barrett’s opinions on the Seventh Court of Appeals during the same period and found