VIDEO: Sotomayor grilling attorney

A lot has been written about Sonia Sotomayor’s tough questioning style as an appellate judge.

This video, unearthed from C-SPAN archives, shows Sotomayor grilling a government attorney in November 2008 during arguments in Arar v. Ashcroft, in which a Canadian citizen challenged the U.S. government for rendering him into Syrian custody, where he was tortured.

It’s unclear whether Sotomayor is truly frustrated with the government attorney here or is just engaging in the Socratic method. Either way, it provides a glimpse into what some of her detractors (and supporters, quite honestly) might be referring to.

As Jeffrey Rosen has noted, the Almanac of the Federal Judiciary recounts some unfavorable comments by attorneys who appeared before Sotomayor:

Sotomayor can be tough on lawyers, according to those interviewed. “She is a terror on the bench.” “She is very outspoken.” “She can be difficult.” “She is temperamental and excitable. She seems angry.” “She is overly aggressive–not very judicial. She does not have a very good temperament.” “She abuses lawyers.” “She really lacks judicial temperament. She behaves in an out of control manner. She makes inappropriate outbursts.” “She is nasty to lawyers. She doesn’t understand their role in the system–as adversaries who have to argue one side or the other. She will attack lawyers for making an argument she does not like.”

Other attorneys had flattering things to say about Sotomayor style as a judge, and her supporters say it’s unfair to rely on anonymous statements to impugn her reputation.