Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States are the members of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the Chief Justice of the United States. The number of Associate Justices is determined by the United States Congress and is currently set at eight by the Judiciary Act of 1869.
Like the Chief Justice, Associate Justices are nominated by the President of the United States and are confirmed by the United States Senate by majority vote. This is provided for in Article II of the Constitution, which states that the President "shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint... Judges of the supreme Court." Although the Constitution refers to them as "Judges of the Supreme Court", the title actually used is "Associate Justice", introduced in the Judiciary Act of 1789. Associate justices were traditionally styled "Mr. Justice" in court opinions, but the title was shortened to "Justice" in 1980, a year before the first female justice was appointed.
Article III of the Constitution specifies that Associate Justices, and all other United States federal judges "shall hold their Offices during good Behavior". This language means that the appointments are effectively for life, and that, once confirmed, a justice's tenure of office ends only when they die, retire, resign, or are removed from office through the impeachment process.
Each of the Justices of the Supreme Court has a single vote in deciding the cases argued before it; the Chief Justice's vote counts no more than that of any other Justice. However, in drafting opinions, the Chief Justice enjoys additional influence in case disposition if in the majority through his power to assign who writes the opinion. Otherwise, the senior justice in the majority assigns the writing of a decision. Furthermore, the Chief Justice leads the discussion of the case among the justices. The Chief Justice has certain administrative responsibilities that the other Justices do not and is paid slightly more ($255,500 per year for the Chief Justice and $244,400 per year for each Associate Justice).
Associate Justices have seniority by order of appointment, although the Chief Justice is always considered to be the most senior. If two justices are appointed on the same day, the older is designated the senior Justice of the two. Currently, the senior Associate Justice is Anthony Kennedy. By tradition, when the Justices are in conference deliberating the outcome of cases before the Court, the justices state their views in order of seniority. The senior Associate Justice is also tasked with carrying out the Chief Justices's duties when he is unable to, or if that office is vacant.
Current associate justices
Currently, there are eight associate justices on the Court. The justices, ordered by seniority, are:
Retired associate justices
An associate justice who leaves the Court after attaining the age and meeting the service requirements prescribed by federal statute (28 U.S.C. § 371) may retire in senior status rather than resign. After retirement, they keep their title, and by custom may also keep a set of chambers in the Supreme Court building, and employ law clerks. The names of retired associate justices continue to appear alongside those of the active justices in the bound volumes of Supreme Court decisions. Federal statute (28 U.S.C. § 294) provides that retired Supreme Court justices may serveâ€"if designated and assigned by the Chief Justiceâ€"on panels of the U.S. courts of appeals, or on the U.S. district courts. Retired justices are not, however, authorized to take part in the consideration or decision of any cases before the Supreme Court (unlike other retired federal judges who may be permitted do so in their former courts); neither are they known or designated as a "senior judge". When, after his retirement, William O. Douglas attempted to take a more active role than was customary, maintaining that it was his prerogative to do so because of his senior status, he was rebuffed by Chief Justice Warren Burger and admonished by the whole Court.
Currently, there are three living retired Associate Justices: Sandra Day O'Connor, retired January 31, 2006; David H. Souter, retired June 29, 2009; and John Paul Stevens, retired June 29, 2010. Both O'Connor and Souter occasionally serve on panels of the Courts of Appeals of various circuits. Stevens has not performed any judicial duties.
List of Associate Justices
Since the Supreme Court was established in 1789, the following 101 persons have served as Associate Justice:
Notes
See also
- Associate Justice
References
Further reading
