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Supreme Court
From: Victor Bellomy
Date: 06 Oct 2000
Time: 16:41:34
Remote Name: 209.83.26.209
Comments
The Court as an Institution The Constitution elaborated neither
the exact powers and prerogatives of the Supreme Court nor the
organization of the Judicial Branch as a whole. Thus, it was left
to Congress and to the Justices of the Court through their
precedents to develop the federal judiciary and a body of federal
law.
The establishment of a Federal Judiciary was a high priority for
the new government, and the first bill introduced in the United
States Senate became the Judiciary Act of 1789. The act divided
the country into 13 judicial districts, which were, in turn,
organized into three circuits: the Eastern, Middle, and Southern.
The Supreme Court, the country's highest judicial tribunal, was
to sit in the Nation's Capital, and was initially composed of a
Chief Justice and five Associate Justices. For the first 101
years of the Supreme Court's life-but for a brief period in the
early 1800's-the Justices were also required to 'ride circuit,'
and hold circuit court twice a year in each judicial district.
The Supreme Court first assembled on February 1, 1790, in the
Merchants Exchange Building in New York City-then the Nation's
Capital. Chief Justice John Jay was, however, forced to postpone
the initial meeting of the Court until the next day, due to
transportation problems, some of the Justices were not able to
reach New York until February 2.
The earliest sessions of the Court were devoted to organizational
proceedings. The first cases reached the Supreme Court during its
second year, and the Justices handed down their first opinion in
1792.
During its first decade of existence, the Supreme Court rendered
some significant decisions and established lasting precedents.
However, the first Justices complained of the Court's limited
stature; they were also concerned about the burdens of
"riding circuit" under primitive travel conditions.
Chief Justice John Jay resigned from the Court in 1795 to become
Governor of New York State and, despite the pleading of President
John Adams, could not be persuaded to accept reappointment as
Chief Justice when the post again became vacant in 1800.
Consequently, shortly before being succeeded in the White House
by Thomas Jefferson, President Adams appointed John Marshall of
Virginia to be the fourth Chief Justice. This appointment was to
have a significant and lasting effect on the Court and the
country. Chief Justice Marshall's vigorous and able leadership in
the formative years of the Court was central to the development
of its prominent role in American government. Although his
immediate predecessors had served only briefly, Marshall remained
on the Court for 34 years and five months and several of his
colleagues served for more than twenty years.
Members of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President
subject to the approval of the Senate. To ensure an independent
judiciary and to protect judges from partisan pressures, the
Constitution provides that judges serve during "good
Behavior," which has been generally meant life terms. To
further assure their independence, the Constitution provides that
judges' salaries may not be diminished while they are in office.
The number of Justices on the Supreme Court changed six times
before settling at the present total of nine in 1869. Since the
formation of the Court in 1790, there have been only 16 Chief
Justices and 97 Associate Justices, with Justices serving for an
average of 15 years. Despite this important institutional
continuity, the Court has had periodic infusions of new Justices
and new ideas throughout its existence; on average a new Justice
joins the Court every 22 months. President Washington appointed
the six original Justices and before the end of his second term
had appointed four other Justices. During his long tenure,
President Franklin D. Roosevelt came close to this record by
appointing eight Justices and elevating Justice Harlan Fiske
Stone to be Chief Justice.
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Last changed: October 06, 2000