The Role Of Justices In The United States Supreme Court

Throughout history many U.S. Supreme Court Justices have served for numerous years on the Supreme court making final decisions on diverse cases that have created long lasting impacts. The current supreme court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and former justice Sandra Day O’Connor have not only made an impact but are proof that women are equal to men when it comes to court room decisions. Throughout the essay I will explain the background of the justice, the president who appointed them, and the accomplishments made on the Supreme Court.

There were many qualifications that made Justice Alito suitable to become a Supreme Court Justice. After succeeding law school, Justice Alito became a clerk for Third Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Leonard I. Garth in 1976 and 1977 in Newark, New

The current Supreme Court membership is comprised of nine Supreme Court Justices. One of which is the Chief Justice and the other eight are the Associate Justices. The Justices are Chief Justice John Roberts, Jr., and Associate Justices: John Paul Stevens, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, David H. Souter, Clarence Thomas, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen G. Breyer and Samuel Anthony Alito, Jr.

As you are aware, with the recent death of Justice Antonin Scalia, there is a storm brewing between the Republican led Congress and the Democratic White House on the appointment of a new Supreme Court Justice. This brings the issue of term limits for our high court Justices into the forefront, yet again. I urge you to consider an Amendment in support of the Supreme Court Justices having term limits imposed on them to honor the Framers’ original intent when they wrote the Constitution in 1787.

The substantial amount of accomplishments in education and experiences in law, stands out amongst other candidates and makes her beyond qualified as a nominee. Furthermore, her life’s work can aid in her position as a Justice of the Supreme Court, where she can implement her teachings and life’s work into court

Antonin Scalia served as an Associate Justice from the years 1986 to 2016. In which Scalia was an extremely important player for the conservative party and wrote many well-known, important and wonderfully well worded opinions on many cases the Supreme Court decided during his service as an Associate Justice. Scalia came from a small family in New Jersey with an Italian heritage. Throughout his youth he developed strong conservative views that guided his decisions through life and that ultimately led him to the Supreme Court where he helped shape the legal world with his opinions and dissents.

The American Supreme Court is the highest court in the country. The Supreme Court has the final say in issues that have been brought to lower court’s but have been unresolved. The job of the Supreme Court is to determine if the Constitution says what the end result of an issue should be. The Supreme Court was designed to be unbiased and make it’s choices purely based on what the law says. The nine people who are appointed to the Supreme Court are called Justices. They are elected to their position for the remainder of their life or until their resignation. As a result of the tenure given to a Justice spots do not open up often at all. The President nominates the Justice based on a few factors. First off experience is required. Many of the Justices where judges in a lower court such as the Court of Appeals or had a very well respected private practice. Secondly the President often nominates someone who shares his own political ideology. If the President is a conservative it is likely that he will appoint a conservative judge to the Supreme Court. Lastly gender and ethnicity have recently become a factor in a Presidents decision. Up until 1967 all of the Justices had been white males to fix this problem Lyndon Johnson appointed Thurgood Marshall the first black Justice. Later Ronald Reagan appointed Sandra Day O’Connor the first female Justice. However a presidential nomination is not enough to be a Justice. The nominee must be confirmed by the Senate also by a majority vote.

On February 21, 1936 is when the strongest woman in the supreme court changed court history. Her name is Barbara Jordan. I chose Barbara Jordan because when she lost a campaign or had less votes than anyone else she never stopped. Also she was a very educated and powerful woman. This paper will present important career and biographical information about Jordan.

Supreme Court was a step in the direction to further women’s equality. When Ronald Reagan ran for president, “one of his major campaign promises was to appoint a woman to the nation’s highest court” (Alter 3). After her appointment, she urged for other women to be on the bench. One woman in specific that O’Connor encouraged to be on the bench was Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who became her right hand in the law. Although O’Connor and Ginsburg disagreed on disparate court cases, they were relentless allies. “Justice O’Connor encouraged Ginsburg to write the famous 1996 opinion that required the all-male Virginia Military Institute to admit qualified women” (Alter 3); O’Connor wanted equality for women. She was strong in her beliefs and was determined to see them sought out.

Established in Article III of the United States Constitution, The U.S. Supreme Court is the only federal branch that is comprised of non-elected members. The President with the advice and consent of Congress appoints Justices. The court adjudicates cases that arise through U.S. Constitutional issues U.S. laws and treaties, interstate cases and cases where a state itself or the U.S. is a party in the case. The Supreme Court has both original and appellate jurisdiction. That is, the court hears cases that originated in the Court itself and cases that have passed through other, lower federal courts with one party finding reasons to appeal. The court interprets the Constitution as it applies to a case, and it attempts to make a decision that most benefits the society of the time. This interpretation stands as the law until the court itself reverses it and deems it unconstitutional. The court has immense power and influence on the country and public policy. Consequently, the justices that make up the court, as individuals, heavily influence public policy. The court has seen as little as six and as many as ten justices serving at one time, including a Chief Justice. Often viewed as the embodiment of the court, the Chief Justice 's personality, judicial outlook and intellect can mold the courts image in public opinion and set the tone for what decisions are made and how.

The supreme court plays a large role in government. The supreme court also known as the judicial branch of government is the highest court in all laws. The supreme court is made up of nine members appointed by the president and serve for life. As of right now there are only eight members. Many people say they should be appointed for life but I would disagree. As you get older you brain tends to forget things without you even noticing which could cause several problems in court. I believe that having supreme court justices that come from different generations will help with diversity and different opinions. Most of the supreme court justices are old in fact the youngest one is fifty-six as you get older most people want to spend more time with

The judicial branch of the United States government was considered to be the weakest due to its inability to enact laws and regulations as opposed to the legislative and executive branches. As their reach of power only touched upon laws already enacted, so was their overall impact. This is not to say that the judicial branch lacks considerable power, for many laws and civil issues within the United States, have been affected by the decisions made through the Supreme Court and lower courts. This was done in order to only allow the courts to interpret and validity the constitutionality of laws enacted by the legislative and executive powers while respecting the rights of the citizens. Because of this, independence of the judicial branch was key

The judicial branch is one of the most powerful branches in the usa besides the legislative branch but the judicial branch has the ability to have the president confirm if they take or leave the Supreme Court Justices are chosen by the President, confirmed by the Senate, and serve for the rest of their lives, as long as they practice “good behavior.”

The Supreme Court has been in charge of many of the death penalty cases over the years such as the Kennedy vs Louisiana case of 6/25/08, the Coker vs Georgia case of 6/29/1997, and the Arkansas vs Virginia case of 6/20/02. Along with the highest branch of government the Legislative, executive, and judicial branch has also played a major key role in the subject as well as creating new laws, making sure certain cases are fit for the death penalty, as well as enforcing the government decisions. Even president Obama has given his opinion of the death penalty, and whether certain cases are justifiable or not. Every branch of government runs in an equal like system to ensure that everything runs as fair as possible.

The Supreme Court is to interpret the constitution and the constitutionality of the laws, not to implement public policy. Implementing policies and laws is the job of congress, not the courts. The states should decide what the legal definition of marriage should or should not be. It is a matter dealing with the everyday lives of others. That responsibility is given to the states, which we have seen in the textbook. Congress, not the Supreme Court, makes laws and it is up to the states to put them into practice. This is why I believe the Supreme Court overstepped its authority.