Should US Supreme Court Justices be Elected?

Introduction

The Framers of the Constitution established the U.S. Supreme Court as the nation's highest federal court. However, the Constitution did not provide any detail on the Court's powers or the organization of the federal judicial branch. Therefore, when the first Congress met in 1789, one of its pressing concerns was to define the federal judiciary. The Judiciary Act of 1789 divided the nation into 13 judicial districts and three circuits. The Supreme Court was organized in 1790 and was composed of a chief justice and five associate justices. Though the Court first met in New York City, it moved with other federal offices to Washington, D.C.

The size of the Supreme Court fluctuated between 1789 and 1869, before it assumed its present membership of nine justices. Under Article III of the Constitution the president is authorized to appoint the justices. However, the Senate must approve the nomination by majority vote. Justices, like all federal judges, have lifetime appointments, meaning they do not have to stand for election or retire at a certain age. A justice may only be removed from office through the impeachment process. Though one justice, Samuel Chase, has faced impeachment, no member of the Court has been removed from office. Justices usually stay on the bench for the remainder of their professional career. Justice William O. Douglas has served the longest of any justice, remaining on the Court for over 36 years. The stability and continuity of service is one of the institutional hallmarks of the Supreme Court.

Supreme Court Justice in the United States

The Supreme Court designates each year it sits as a term. The term begins on the first Monday of October each year and does not adjourn until late June of the following year. However, if an emergency case needs to be decided during the summer recess, the Court will schedule a special hearing. This happened during the early 1970s when cases involving the publication of the Pentagon Papers and the release of White House tapes made by President Richard M. Nixon. During its term the Court schedules oral arguments. However, no hearings are ordinarily heard in May and June, as this is the time when most of the decisions from the term are written and released (Peak, 218).

The court is a collegial body, with all nine member hearing oral and non-oral cases. However, if a justice has a conflict of interest with a party to the case, the justice will not participate in the case. After the Court has considered the written and oral arguments in a case, it takes a vote. A justice in the majority will then be chosen by the chief justice to write the Court's decision (Vollrath, 212). Those who voted in the minority are free to write and file dissenting opinions. Usually justices will add their names to the dissenting opinion but they are free to file separate ones as well. In addition, a justice may vote with the majority but differ on some aspects ...