U.S. Chamber Applauds Sandra Day O'Connor's Service

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United States Chamber of Commerce met today's news that Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor was retiring with gratitude for her years on the court.

"Sandra Day O'Connor has served her nation with great loyalty, judgment and intelligence," said Thomas Donohue, Chamber President and CEO. "She was also a strong judicial voice for a commonsense application of the law and she will be missed."

O'Connor's judicial temperament, with her dedicated focus on the legal arguments in each individual case, marked her influential tenure on the Court, according to the Chamber.

O'Connor was a key voice on the Supreme Court for reining in excessive punitive damages, employing commonsense definitions of disabilities in the Americans with Disabilities Act and establishing federal primacy over foreign affairs.

The Chamber encourages the White House to consider candidates for the Supreme Court who have a demonstrated understanding of the legal and regulatory system affecting the business community. The importance of a unified regulatory structure in fostering a free enterprise system that encourages market innovation cannot be ignored.

"Justice O'Connor's place in history, as the first woman appointed to the court, is secure," said Donohue. "All Americans should be thankful for her efforts on the court and we wish her well."

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world's largest business federation representing more than three million businesses and organizations of every size, sector and region.

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