Overview
- Justice Samuel Alito told the Court on Sept. 28 that he will not take part in Suncor Energy v. County Commissioners of Boulder County, removing himself from the case one week before arguments.
- Alito told Bloomberg he took the step because it was the “prudent” choice even though the Supreme Court’s legal office told him he was not required to recuse.
- Reporting shows Alito and his wife hold energy-related assets that drew scrutiny, including Chevron shares inherited in 2012 and a 2022 lease of Oklahoma mineral rights to Citizen Energy III.
- Those leases and later transactions tied to Citizen, Validus Energy and Elliott Investment Management have drawn links to investors with large Suncor positions and raise questions about financial connections to parties in the suit.
- The move has renewed calls for clearer Supreme Court ethics rules after earlier reporting about an undisclosed 2008 private flight and follows opinion pieces urging blind trusts and stricter disclosure for justices.