Supreme Court

How many Supreme Court Justices are there?

How many Supreme Court Justices are there?

There are nine
Supreme Court Justices on the Supreme Court of the United States. These nine
Supreme Court Justices who serve on the Supreme Court of the United States are
only able to ascend to the Supreme Court of the United States after being
nominated by the President of the United States, undergoing a hearing held by
the Judiciary Committee of the United States Senate, and receiving a majority
vote in their favor on the floor of the full Senate.

The nine Supreme Court Justices on the Supreme Court of the United States are
the final arbiters on whether or not a law passed by the legislative branch is
constitutional. The ability of the nine Supreme Court Justices to conduct
judicial review of an act passed by the legislature was established under 1803
sitting of the Supreme Court of the United States of America, under which the
Marshall Court interpreted the Constitution to grant the Supreme Court of the
United States the Constitutional authority and responsibility to address
whether or not the cases presented to it were in accord with the Constitution
of the United States of America. The case which enshrined this principle was
the case Marburry v. Madison. 

Who is the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?

Who is the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?

The Chief Justice of Supreme Court is John G. Roberts. Justice Roberts was appointed to be the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court by George W. Bush. Chief Justice Roberts began his tenure as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court immediately upon his accession to the Supreme Court on September 29, 2005. 
Prior to becoming the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Roberts served as the Circuit Judge for the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit for two years, was in private practice for thirteen years, served as a professor at Georgetown University Law Center for thirteen years, was an Associate Counsel the President for four years under Ronald Reagan, and as a special assistant to the Attorney General for two years after leaving law school.
The other Supreme Court Justices’ names are, in order by how long they have served, Anton Scalia, Anthony Scalia, Clarence Thomas, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Samuel Alito, Sonia Sotomayer, and Elena Kagan. The Supreme Court justices’ names reveal that they come from a broad variety of backgrounds, meaning each is capable of bringing a unique perspective the Supreme Court. 

Landmark Supreme Court Cases You Must Know

Landmark Supreme Court Cases You Must Know

Supreme Court decisions have shaped many aspects of American life.
One of the most important landmark Supreme Court Cases was Marbury v. Madison which established the principle of judicial review.
Several important Supreme Court decisions, such as McCulloh v. Maryland in 1819, Gibbons v. Ogden in 1824, Northern Securities Company v. United States in 1904, Lochner v. New York in 1905, Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey v. United States in 1911, and Employment Division v. Smith in 1990 have been landmark Supreme Court Cases in shaping the modern commercial practice in the United States of America due to their interpretation of the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution.
Landmark Supreme Court cases such as Mapp v Ohio in 1961, Gideon v. Wainwright in 1963, and Miranda v. Arizona were all Supreme Court cases that lead to what are commonly known as a suspected criminal’s Miranda rights. 
These Supreme Court cases have forced police to inform suspects that they have the right to an attorney and the right to not incriminate themselves (which is guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment), although the 2010 decision Berghuis v. Thompkins has made it clear that if a suspect wishes to resume the protection of Miranda after waiving it, the request to invoke Miranda must be explicit.
There have been several landmark Supreme Court cases dealing with the legal status and rights of minorities, such as Dred Scott v. Sandford in 1857, Plessy v. Ferguson in 1869, Korematsu v United States in 1944, and Regents of the University of California v. Bakke in 1978.
Other famous Supreme Court decisions include Roe v. Wade in 1973, US v. Nixon in 1974, and Bush v. Gore in 2000. 

Facts About the Supreme Court Building

Facts About the Supreme Court Building

The US Supreme Court building was the final of the three building built for the major branches of the federal government. Before the Supreme Court Building was constructed, the US Supreme Court was forced to meet in the basement of the basement of the United States Capitol Building, followed by the US Supreme Court presiding in the Old Senate Chamber. 
It was not until 1935 that the US Supreme Court moved into its own building. The Supreme Court Building is located in Washington D. C. It is located one block immediately east of the Capitol building.
The Supreme Court Building was designed by architect Cass Gilbert. The cornerstone was laid on October 13, 1392, with construction being completed in 1935. The four story building cost almost ten million dollars. The outside of the Supreme Court building is made from Vermont marble. 
With the exception of the US Supreme Court room itself, the interior surfaces are lined with Alabama marble. The Courtroom is lined with Spanish ivory vein marble. There are twenty four columns in the Courtroom, which are made of ivory buff and golden marble mined from quarries near Siena Italy.
The western facade of the US Supreme Court building, which is often considered the front of the building since it faces the Capitol Building, bears the motto “Equal Justice Under Law,” while the east face of the Supreme Court Building is inscribed with the saying “Justice, the Guardian of Liberty.” 

US Supreme Court Docket Explained

US Supreme Court Docket Explained

The majority of the cases on the US Supreme Court Docket are appellate cases. The appellate cases on the Supreme Court docket are attempts to have rulings from lower courts overturned. 
Appellate cases comprise the majority of the Supreme Court Docket since the Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over only a small number of cases. Therefore, much of the Court’s time is spent examining lower court rulings that are presented to the Supreme Court for consideration on the US Supreme Court Docket.
In order to be placed on the US Supreme Court, the Supreme Court must believe that there is an underlying constitutional issue, or have an inclination that one of the lower courts did not act properly. 
However, inclusion on the US Supreme Court docket does not automatically mean that the Supreme Court will overturn the lower court. In fact, in many cases, the Supreme Court supports, or upholds, the finding of a lower court.
The Supreme Court docket is the list of cases that a particular session of the Supreme Court has agreed to hear. The Supreme Court has the authority to set its own docket. However, in a largely forgotten process, a lower court judge may assist in forming the US Supreme Court Docket if he or she “certifies” a case as being in need of national attention or that needs clarification by the Supreme Court. 

Supreme Court Justices at a Glance

Supreme Court Justices at a Glance

US Supreme Court Justices are nominated for the position by the President of the United States. After they are nominated, the Senate of the United States Congress will hold a committee meeting, during which members of the Senate Judiciary Committee will interview any prospective Supreme Court judges. In recent years, the Senate nomination hearings for the Supreme Court justices have become a highly politicized process.
During the Judiciary hearings, prospective Supreme Court judges can expect to have any previous rulings they have issued or any ex parte statements or even membership in organizations outside of the court house examined, as the Senators on the Judiciary Committee attempt to determine the political leanings of each of the US Supreme Court Justices that are appointed to the Court. The Judiciary Committee does so because of the increased partisanship in national politics.
Pinning down the political leanings of the US Supreme Court Justices is less important than nominees for other positions for two major reasons. The first is that the US Supreme Court has traditionally been an apolitical body, focusing more on if the laws which are under review are constitutional than if they adhere to a particular political framework. 
This is not to say that US Supreme Court justices are not political, as seen by the fact that former President Howard Taft was appointed to the Supreme Court after he left the Presidency. Rather, politics is a less important concern for Supreme Court justices. The second reason is that the nine Supreme Court justices hold their positions for long periods of time, since the Court is a life long tenure, making it likely that an individual justice’s political beliefs will change while they are on the Court. 

What You Must Know About the Supreme Court

What You Must Know About the Supreme Court

In any county, the Supreme Court is the highest court in the country. A supreme court may be known as the court of last resort, last instance, or last judgment. A supreme court may also be referred to as the high court or highest court. A supreme court is a court from which a ruling cannot be appealed.
The United States Supreme Court is made up of nine justices. It represents one of the three branches of the federal system, and is the only court in the United States which is specifically established in the Constitution. It is presided over by a Chief Justice of the United States, with eight Associate Justice. 
Each justice appointed to the United States Supreme Court is nominated to the position by the President of the United States, and receives confirmation through the advice and consent of the Senate. The Senate bestows consent in a majority vote.
Judges of the United States Supreme Courts do not have term limits, with the tenure of each United Court Supreme Court Justice persisting as long as each justice exhibits “good behavior.” A member of the United States Supreme Court can only be removed upon death, resignation, retirement, or conviction upon an impeachable charge.
The majority of the cases argues before the United States Supreme Court in Washington D.C. are appellate cases, although there is a small range of cases over which the Court has original jurisdiction.

A Short Biography on Justice Sonia Sotomayor

A Short Biography on Justice Sonia Sotomayor

Sonia Sotomayor’s biography reveals that judge Sonia Sotomayor beings a strong life experience with her to the bench.
Judge Sonia Sotomayor was born in the Bronx, New York City. Sonia Sotomayor graduated summa cum laude with a B.A from Princeton University, before receiving her J.D. from Yale Law School after serving as an editor at the Yale Law Journal. 
After graduation, she served as an assistant district attorney in New York for five years. She entered private practice in 1984, before being nominated to serve on the US District Court for the Southern District of New York by President H.W. Bush in 1991, with her confirmation to the position coming in early 1992.
While serving in that capacity, Judge Sonia Sotomayor issued two famous rulings, the first an injunction against Major League Baseball which ended the 1994 baseball strike. Judge Sonia Sotomayor also ruled to allow the Wall Street Journal to publish Vince Foster’s final note. 
In 1997, Bill Clinton nominated her to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. In a repeat of Sonia Sotomayor’s biography, her confirmation was delayed once again. While on the Second Circuit, Judge Sonia Sotomayor heard more than three thousand appeals and wrote almost four hundred opinions. Judge Sonia Sotomayor has also taught at NYU School of Law and Columbia Law School.
Judge Sonia Sotomayor was President Barack Obama’s first nominee to the US Supreme Court.

A Short Biography on Justice Samuel Alito

A Short Biography on Justice Samuel Alito

Justice Samuel Alito is the one hundred and tenth Supreme Court Justice. This conservative jurist was appointed to the Supreme Court by President George W. Bush.
Samuel A. Alito Jr. was born on April 1, 1950 in Trenton, New Jersey, and grew up in Hamilton Township a suburb of Trenton. Samuel Alito left a note in his college yearbook which said that he hoped to “eventually warm a seat on the Supreme Court.” 
He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. He then attended Yale Law School, where he served as editor of the Yale Law Journal while earning his Juris Doctor in 1975.
After graduating from Yale Law School, Samuel A. Alito Jr. served on active duty from September to December 1975. He earned a rank of Captain before receiving an Honorable Discharge in 1980.
During 1976 and 1977, Samuel Alito clerked for Third Circuit appeals Judge Leonard Garth in Newark, New Jersey. He interviewed for a clerkship with Supreme Court Justice White, but was not hired. For 1977-1981, Alito served as Assistant United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey. 
He prosecuted may drug trafficking and organized crime cases. He was an Assistant to Solicitor General Rex E. Lee from 1981-1985, during which time he argued twelve cases before the Supreme Court. From 1985-1987, Samuel A. Alito Jr. was the Deputy Assistant to Attorney General Edwin Meese. From 1987-1990, Alito served as Attorney for the District of New Jersey.
In February 1990, President George H.W. Bush nominated him to serve on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. In 2005, George W. Bush nominated Samuel Alito to become a Supreme Court Justice. He was narrowly approved, by a vote of 58-42. 

Facts About the State Court of Georgia

Facts About the State Court of Georgia

Georgia State Court System Defined:
The state government of Georgia and its respective court system was established and is currently governed in accordance with the Georgia State Constitution.
The State court of Georgia is a republican-based government body with three distinct branches of operation: the Legislature, the Executive branch, and the judiciary.
Through a defined system of separation of powers or ā€œchecks and balancesā€, each of these branches possesses some authority to act on its own, some authority to regulate the other branches, and some authority to be regulated by the other branches.
The judiciary branch, which holds the State Court of Georgia, is the body responsible for determining and upholding the various legal codes within the state. 
The highest judiciary power in the state of Georgia is the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court of Georgia is composed of seven judges.
The state Court system of Georgia also possesses a Court of Appeals, which is composed of 12 judges. 
Georgia is divided into 49 judicial circuits, each circuit possesses a Superior Court which consists of local citizens numbering between two and 19 membersā€”the numbers of local citizens is dependent on the circuitā€™s population. 
As stated by the stateā€™s Constitution, Georgia also possesses probate courts, juvenile courts, magistrate courts, as well as state courts; the General Assembly may also authorize various municipal courts. Other court systems, including the county recorderā€™s courts, civil courts and other agencies may continue with the same jurisdiction until otherwise stated or provided by law.
Each county within the state has at least one superior court, probate court, magistrate court, and where needed a state court and a juvenile court. In the absence of a state court or a juvenile court, the superior court exercises the jurisdiction in question.