If you're a native New Yorker or perhaps a fan of the New York Yankees, the name Sonia Sotomayor may sound familiar. In 1995 Judge Sotomayor became as legendary as that of baseball hall of famers for ending a long baseball strike by ruling against owners in favor of players. According to Ms. Sotomayor, the owners were trying to destroy the labor system and the concept of collective bargaining. A die-hard fan of the Bronx Bombers herself, Judge Sotomayor took only 15 minutes to issue the directive that led to the settlement in the 1994-95 strike and make baseball history.

Judge Sonia Sotomayor is seen in her judge's robes in this undated 2009 handout photo released by the White House in Washington. Photo credit: REUTERS/Stacey Ilyse

Now Judge Sotomayor is making headlines again as President Barack Obama's nominee for U.S. Supreme Court Justice, replacing retiring Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Ms. Sotomayor, who has more than 16 years of court experience, will become the first Latina ever to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court and the third woman in U.S. history to form part of the highest court. For the past 11 years, she has been a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, based in New York City.

Ms. Sotomayor, who is of Puerto Rican descent, was born in 1954 and grew up in the New York City Housing Authority's (NYCHA's) Bronxdale Houses. Bronxdale Houses, located in the Bruckner section of the Bronx, has 28 seven-story buildings with 1,496 apartments. Bronxdale is home to approximately 3,500 residents. A modern, high-tech community center opened its doors on the grounds of this development back in 2007, and offers educational and recreational activities for children and adults of the development and the surrounding community.

Ms. Sotomayor was raised in public housing by her mother, who worked as a nurse at a methadone clinic, to support Ms. Sotomayor and her brother Juan. At the tender age of eight, Ms. Sotomayor was diagnosed with diabetes and just one year later her father, a factory worker, died of a heart condition. She is no stranger to adversity, but she did not let these challenges deter her from reaching her goals.

Judge Sotomayor attended Cardinal Spellman High School, a private Catholic school in the Bronx, and was later accepted into Princeton University, where she graduated with honors at a time when the school had just begun to accept female students. She then went on to study law at Yale Law School, where she was editor of the school's law journal. Her inspiration to pursue a career in law came from reading Nancy Drew detective novels and watching episodes of Perry Mason, a defense attorney, on TV.

Sonia Sotomayor is announced as US President Barack Obama's nominee for the Supreme Court in the East Room of the White House. Photo credit: Michael Reynolds

Ms. Sotomayor worked as an Assistant District Attorney for New York District Attorney Robert Morgenthau and for several years litigated cases for a private law firm until that big day when this woman with a very modest upbringing, who is a product of public housing, was nominated to sit on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. At age 40, Ms. Sotomayor became the youngest judge in the Southern District of New York and the first American of Puerto Rican descent to hold this position.

In 1992 she was confirmed to serve as a U.S. Circuit Court Judge becoming the first Puerto Rican woman to serve as a federal Judge in New York. Then in 1998, former President Bill Clinton nominated her for a seat on the second highest court in America, the U.S. Court of Appeals in the Second Circuit, a seat she currently holds.

During a lecture in 2002, Judge Sotomayor said, "My family showed me by their example how wonderful and vibrant life is and how wonderful it is to have a Latina soul.  They taught me to love America, to value its lesson that great things could be achieved if one works for them."

President Obama said he was looking for "a qualified nominee with legal and real world experience, as well as an appreciation for the impact of court decisions on everyday life."  The U.S. Senate now has about four months to hold confirmation hearings and decide whether Sonia Sotomayor's court experience and humble backgrounds make her the best choice for U.S. Supreme Court Justice.

By Heidi Morales
May 26, 2009