In an evening that blended personal storytelling with profound civic inspiration, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor took to the stage at the University of Miami’s Donna E. Shalala Student Center on Friday, Sept. 19.
The event, part of the School of Law’s Robert B. Cole Lecture Series in collaboration with Books & Books, drew a capacity crowd of students and guests eager to hear from one of the nation's most respected legal figures. The focus of the conversation was not the Supreme Court bench, but the pages of her latest children's book, “Just Shine!: How to Be a Better You,” a heartfelt tribute to the woman who inspired her most: her late mother, Celina Báez.
The program began with a warm welcome from University Board Chair Manny Kadre, who noted a shared connection with the justice. “Justice Sotomayor has something in common with both President Joe Echevarria and myself—we all grew up in the Bronx,” he said.
Interim law school Dean Patricia Sanchez Abril introduced the justice, revealing a special connection to the book’s story. Abril noted that Sotomayor's mother, Celina—whose “wisdom and kindness are the inspiration for this book”—lived in South Florida for 29 years.
This event marked the third visit in the past year by a U.S. Supreme Court justice during Abril’s leadership—following Justice Ketanji Brown-Jackson and Justice Stephen Breyer’s conversations with students—and underscored the University’s mission to “transform lives” by “convening bright minds.”
Sotomayor’s conversation, moderated by CBS News Miami anchor and reporter Erika Gonzalez, revealed the deep personal roots of the book’s message.
When asked how she manages trying people, the justice recalled her mother’s response to her friendship with a very difficult woman. “‘I do get frustrated at times, but then I remember what a big heart she has. Whenever I am sick, she is the first one at the door with food,’” she recalled her mother saying. “‘She is lonely, and it doesn’t cost me anything to listen to her.’”
Sotomayor took from that a life lesson learned young. She keeps in mind that those with whom she doesn’t agree have family and friends they love, they support charities, and “are acting out of good faith and believe that they are doing the right thing,” she said. “If we all approached the world that way, it would be a better world.”
During the conversation, Sotomayor walked through the audience, talking and giving hugs to children. She answered a few questions posed by School of Law students, including first-year Raymond Rif.
Rif asked Sotomayor about her writing in her memoir about how her upbringing in the Bronx shaped her path into law. He added that he is also the child of immigrants, a first-generation American, and now a first-generation law student, as are 74 percent of his 1L classmates.
“How do you think first-generation lawyers, like many of us here, can best honor where we come from while navigating elite legal spaces that often expect us to conform?” he asked.
Her answer was threefold: to prioritize person and academic excellence, to achieve the highest standard in your work and studies, and to dedicate yourself to your education. “Your first and only priority is to be the best,” she said, and to commit to the point where you have “figured out how to master your classes.”
Next, she advised finding a career path that makes a personal impact; to find a profession that is personally meaningful.
“Find the job from which you receive the greatest satisfaction,” she said. She cautioned that it requires looking inward to determine, “How can I make a difference?” without being influenced by other people’s judgement.
And finally, she advised students to fulfill their obligation to help others, imploring that it is a responsibility to support and guide the next generation within their family and community.
“Are you going back to your high schools and neighborhoods and talking about the advantage of advanced studies? Starting at home, and remember always, as you continue, that it is your obligation to you,” Sotomayor said.
Rif said he was deeply honored to represent the University of Miami School of Law and ask Sotomayor a question.
“Justice Sotomayor's answer was deeply affirming,” he said. “Justice Sotomayor spoke about drawing strength from our roots, but she also emphasized something critical: First-generation students often feel the need to excel in everything, and the most important place to channel that drive right now is [by] excelling in our studies. That, Justice Sotomayor said, is what will ultimately put us in the best position to make the kind of change we want to see in the world. Her words are not only inspiring, but also a clear call I feel compelled to live up to.”
In front of a bilingual audience, Sotomayor’s remarks flowed seamlessly between English to Spanish as she spoke of her mother’s ability “to make everyone around her shine” and how these lessons have guided her life and career—including her work on the United States Supreme Court.
“Everything I understood about how to treat people, how to make others feel important, how to feel that they were important to me, came from her,” Sotomayor said, emphasizing that this is a lesson “every child should know.” She shared how she was inspired to pursue a legal career by the TV show “Perry Mason” and her love for reading, sparked by her mother’s dedication to her children's education.
The occasion also served to honor Robert B. Cole, the late legal advisor to the University, through the lecture series that bears his name. Last academic year, the law school lecture series brought Erwin Chemerinsky and the Honorable Michael P. Allen to speak. Thanks to Cole’s generosity, Sotomayor’s book will be distributed to students and to clients of the School of Law’s Children and Youth Law Clinic, which serves children in foster care.
As the event concluded, attendees were encouraged to take home a copy of “Just Shine!” and allow it to “spark meaningful dialogue” with others. Sotomayor's visit served as a powerful reminder that her legacy—built on a career spanning the trial court, appellate court, and the Supreme Court—extends far beyond the legal world.
