Fact check: Did she know about the abortion briefs?

We got the following fact-check request to @AP_Courtside from @RNCSCOTUS:

Where's @AP_Courtside fact check? #Sotomayor claims never reviewed PRLDEF briefs but AP said she headed litigation cmte http://is.gd/1yQaD

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., asked Sonia Sotomayor about legal briefs that the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund filed with the Supreme Court in abortion cases. Sotomayor, who served on the governing board of the PRLDEF (now called Latino Justice PRLDEF), said she did not review those briefs.

She said a board member's main responsibility is fundraising and added: "I'm sure that a review of the board meetings would show that that's what we spent most of our time on. To the extent that we looked at the organization's legal work, it was to ensure that it was consistent with the broad mission statement of the fund."

True?

The record is murky on this. Here's what we know: Sotomayor was on the board from 1980 to 1992 and headed its litigation committee. During that time, PRLDEF filed briefs arguing against abortion restrictions. Anti-abortion groups have cited those briefs in their opposition to Sotomayor's nomination.

In an interview with the AP, Cesar Perales, the head of the legal advocacy group, said Sotomayor had no direct involvement with the group's legal activities.

"She was on the board of directors, she was not a member of the legal staff, so she was not directly involved in the legal arguments that we presented," Perales said. "Her role was to help us raise funds, set policy, hire the person who would run the organization."

As a board member involved in setting policy, Sotomayor would have been aware of the group's stance, even if she did not review the documents. The New York Times suggested Sotomayor was more closely involved in litigation than she's letting on. In its story, the Times said Sotomayor was involved with and was "an ardent supporter of their various legal efforts."

-Matt Apuzzo, AP reporter who has covered legal affairs since 2000

(UPDATES include Twitter post that prompted the fact check.)