 Sotomayor was nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York by President George H. W. Bush in 1991 ; confirmation followed in 1992 . In 1997 , she was nominated by President Bill Clinton to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit . Her nomination was slowed by the Republican majority in the United States Senate , but she was eventually confirmed in 1998 . On the Second Circuit , Sotomayor heard appeals in more than 3 @,@ 000 cases and wrote about 380 opinions . Sotomayor has taught at the New York University School of Law and Columbia Law School . 
