Liptak joined "The New York Times" news staff in 2002 as its national legal correspondent. He covered the Supreme Court nominations of John Roberts and Samuel Alito; the investigation into the disclosure of the identity of Valerie Plame, an undercover Central Intelligence Agency operative; the trial of John Lee Malvo, one of the Washington-area snipers; judicial ethics; and various aspects of the criminal justice system, including capital punishment. He inaugurated the "Sidebar" column in January 2007. The column covers and considers developments in the law.