Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is a step closer to making history after day one of her US Supreme Court confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill.
If confirmed, Ms Jackson will be the first black woman to sit on the highest court in the United States in its 233-year history.
Ms Jackson is US President Joe Biden's first pick for the court, but said she plans to decide cases from a "neutral posture".
"I have been a judge for nearly a decade now and I take that responsibility — and my duty to be independent — very seriously," she said.
She also thanked her husband and two daughters for their support.
On day one, senators laid the groundwork for the questions they will ask when the hearing continues on Tuesday (local time).
Democrats are hoping for a quick process, which could be completed by early April, but Republicans have vowed to ask "tough questions" in the days ahead.
So, who is Ketanji Brown Jackson?
Now 51, Ms Jackson first fell in love with the law when she four years old.
"It was my father who started me on this path," she said while accepting her Supreme Court nomination in February.
"Some of my earliest memories are of him sitting at the kitchen table, reading his law books.
"I watched him study and he became my first professional role model."
Before going to law school in Miami, where the Jacksons then lived, Ms Jackson's father was a high school history teacher.
Her mother, a former science teacher, also taught in public schools.
Their daughter was an exceptional student.
Ms Jackson was president of her high school class and completed her undergraduate degree at Harvard, before continuing to Harvard Law School, where she edited the prestigious Law Review.
"She knows who she is, and she remembers where she comes from," Antoinette Coakley, one of Ms Brown's college roommates and close friends, told The 19th.
"Her parents are graduates of historically black colleges, they're accomplished people in their own right [who] instilled the values in their children of hard work and discipline and giving back.
"And she brought all of that with her to school."
From Harvard, Ms Jackson clerked for Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, the liberal justice whose seat she now hopes to fill.
Mr Breyer announced his resignation in January, giving Mr Biden an opening to fulfil his campaign promise to nominate a black woman to the bench.
What happens next?
Barring a major misstep, Ms Jackson's confirmation process is expected to be straightforward.
While some previous hearings have lasted months, Democrats want their nominee fully vetted and voted on before a two-week recess begins on April 8.
Supreme Court hopefuls need a simple majority of senators to vote in their favour in order to secure one of the coveted lifelong appointments.
The Senate is currently split 50-50, with Vice-President Kamala Harris holding the tie-breaking vote.
That means Ms Jackson is likely a shoo-in for the role, even without Republican backing.
"It's a really exciting moment for black women in the legal profession to see one of our own ascend to the very top," said Alexis Karteron, an associate professor of law and the director of the Constitutional Rights Clinic at Rutgers University.
"I think it's fair to say that a lot of us are watching with a lot of excitement and pride to see her be nominated and watch her confirmation process."
Despite incremental gains, black women are significantly under-represented in the legal profession, which remains dominated by white men.
A recent survey found around 3 per cent of all lawyers in the United States are black women, while less than 4 per cent of partners in US law firms are women of colour.
For Mr Biden, who chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee for eight years, Ms Jackson's nomination is a chance "to leave his mark on the Supreme Court", Ms Karteron said.
"And I believe it's time that we have a court that reflects the full talents and greatness of our nation with a nominee of extraordinary qualifications and that we inspire all young people to believe that they can one day serve their country at the highest level."
He thanked Ms Harris, who is herself a lawyer and former attorney-general of California, for helping him choose Ms Brown.
What experience does Jackson bring to the table?
If confirmed, Ms Jackson will be the second black justice on the current court alongside conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, who was hospitalised on Friday evening with "flu-like symptoms".
She will take the total number of women on the court to four, sitting alongside Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett — whose nomination was rushed through after the death of liberal powerhouse Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 2020.
Ms Jackson is also a liberal but will not alter the 6-3 conservative supermajority cemented during the final weeks of the Trump presidency.
Even so, Ms Karteron predicted Ms Jackson would still put her own stamp the job.
"I've heard Supreme Court justices say before that whenever a new member joins the court, it's a new court," she said.
"And although she won't shift the ideological balance of the court, she has a new voice … and she has a new perspective."
Ms Jackson has had a lengthy career as a lawyer and judge and served on the US Sentencing Commission, which sets federal sentencing guidelines.
She notably spent two-and-a-half years as a public defender in Washington DC.
Along with Justice Thurgood Marshall, the first black justice on the Supreme Court and the only one who brought criminal defence experience, that makes her an outlier among her potential peers.
"Being a public defender means you're representing indigent people who can't afford an attorney on their own," Ms Karteron said.
The government-appointed attorneys represent some of the most marginalised and vulnerable people in the justice system.
Ms Jackson has served as a federal judge since 2013 and has been confirmed by the Senate three times before, including last year when she became a Circuit Judge with the support of three Republican senators: South Carolina's Lindsey Graham, Maine's Susan Collins and Alaska's Lisa Murkowski.
"Both in terms of her personal and professional experiences — she's gone through the world in a way that's a little bit different than everyone else on the court," Ms Karteron said.
Republicans want to paint the former public defender as 'soft on crime'
Ahead of her confirmation hearing, Ms Jackson met privately with 45 senators to discuss her career and legal philosophy.
Following their meeting, Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Ms Jackson was clearly qualified for the role but signalled he may not vote for her regardless.
Meanwhile, Senator Graham backflipped on his previous position, accusing Mr Biden appeasing the "radical left".
"There's always a little bit of theatre involved as senators from both parties either try to show their support for the nominee or try to get in some hits on the nominee," Ms Karteron said.
"So far, nothing particularly controversial has come up about Judge Jackson's background — she really has superlative credentials to be on the Supreme Court.
"She seems like a very thoughtful, careful judge who rules well within the mainstream."
Even so, Republicans have already accused Ms Jackson of being soft on crime in relation to sex-related offences — a line of attack that may play out over the next four days.
In his opening remarks, Senator Charles Grassley, the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, told her he would not turn the hearing into "a spectacle", a nod to the controversial appointment of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexual assault.
“What we will do, however, is ask tough questions about Judge Jackson’s judicial philosophy," he said.
Representatives from both parties acknowledged Ms Jackson's historic achievement.
"You're a living witness to the fact that in America all is possible," Senator Dick Durbin, the Democrat who chairs the committee, said.
"It's not easy being the first. Often, you have to be the best, in some ways the bravest."
