Eleanor Finch
The process of appointing and confirming a U.S. Supreme Court justice is outlined in the U.S. Constitution, although the method of selecting nominees is not explicitly stated in law. The President of the United States is responsible for nominating a candidate to fill a Supreme Court vacancy, with the advice and consent of the United States Senate, according to Article II of the Constitution. The Senate Judiciary Committee then evaluates the nomination before the full Senate votes to confirm or reject the nominee. Justices are typically appointed for life and can only be removed from office through impeachment.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of justices | 9 |
| Composition | 1 Chief Justice and 8 Associate Justices |
| Appointment | Nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate |
| Tenure | Justices may hold tenure for life, as long as they maintain "good behavior" |
| Removal | Can only be removed from office by impeachment |
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What You'll Learn
Justices are nominated by the President
The process of appointing and confirming a U.S. Supreme Court justice is outlined in the U.S. Constitution. When a vacancy occurs on the Supreme Court, the President of the United States is given the authority, under Article II of the Constitution, to nominate a person to fill the vacancy. The President nominates a candidate, who then goes through a pre-hearing investigative stage before appearing at a public hearing. The President's nomination is referred to the United States Senate, where the Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing. The nominee provides testimony and responds to questions from members of the panel. The Judiciary Committee then decides whether to report the nomination favorably to the full Senate, report it unfavorably, or report it without a recommendation.
The full Senate will then vote on whether to confirm or reject the nominee. The Senate must provide its advice and consent to the nomination for the candidate to be confirmed as a Justice. Justices typically hold office for life and their salaries may not be reduced while they are in office. These restrictions protect the judiciary's independence from political branches of government.
The Constitution also allows the President to appoint a Justice while the Senate is in recess. However, this method has been disfavored since President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed three Supreme Court Justices in this manner.
While the Constitution outlines the process of appointing and confirming a U.S. Supreme Court justice, the process of choosing nominees is not codified in law. Past presidents have received lists of recommendations from the White House counsel, the attorney general, and lawyers in the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel. Nominees have often been friends or acquaintances who shared ideological views with the president. The nominating process is also influenced by individuals and organizations outside of the administration.
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Nominees are confirmed by the Senate
The process of appointing and confirming a U.S. Supreme Court justice is outlined in the U.S. Constitution, but the process of choosing nominees is not codified in law. The President of the United States nominates a person to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court, with the "advice and consent" of the United States Senate. The Senate Judiciary Committee then considers the nomination. This committee holds public hearings where the nominee testifies, providing insight into their qualifications, background, and judicial philosophy. The committee can then decide whether to report the nomination favorably, unfavorably, or without a recommendation to the full Senate. The full Senate will then vote on whether to confirm or reject the nominee.
The Constitution also allows the President to appoint a Justice while the Senate is in recess. However, this method has been disfavored since President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed three Supreme Court Justices in this way, including Chief Justice Earl Warren.
Justices typically hold office for life and can only be removed from office by impeachment. Their salaries may not be reduced while they are in office, and they cannot be removed if impeached by the House of Representatives unless convicted by the Senate.
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Justices hold office for life
The Constitution of the United States permits Justices to hold office for life. This is to protect the independence of the judiciary from the political branches of government. Justices can be impeached and removed from office, but this has only happened once, with Associate Justice Samuel Chase in 1805. The Constitution states that Justices 'shall hold their offices during good behaviour'. This means that they can hold office for as long as they choose, and their salaries may not be reduced while they are in office.
The process of appointing and confirming a U.S. Supreme Court Justice is set out in the U.S. Constitution. When a vacancy occurs, the President of the United States has the authority to nominate a person to fill the vacancy. The nomination is then referred to the United States Senate, where the Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing. The nominee testifies and responds to questions from members of the panel. The Judiciary Committee then decides whether to report the nomination favorably, unfavorably, or without a recommendation to the full Senate. The full Senate will then vote on whether to confirm or reject the nominee.
The President can also appoint a Justice while the Senate is in recess, although this method is disfavored. President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed three Supreme Court Justices through this method, including Chief Justice Earl Warren.
The process for choosing nominees is not codified in law, and past presidents have used various methods to select nominees. These have included receiving lists of recommendations from the White House counsel, the attorney general, and lawyers in the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel. Nominees have often been friends or acquaintances who shared ideological views with the president. The nominating process is also influenced by individuals and organizations outside of the administration.
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Justices can be impeached
The Constitution states that Justices "shall hold their offices during good behaviour". This means that Justices hold office as long as they choose and can only be removed from office by impeachment. Justices generally may hold tenure for life, as long as they maintain "good behaviour". Their salaries may not be reduced while they are in office.
In theory, a Justice may be removed if they are impeached by the House of Representatives and convicted by the Senate. The power to impeach a Supreme Court Justice first lies with the House of Representatives. A House legislator must introduce an article of impeachment before a vote is held. If a majority of the House votes in favour of impeachment, the articles then move to the Senate for a trial. Two-thirds of the Senate must then vote to convict, which would remove the Justice from the court.
In all of American history, only one Supreme Court Justice has ever been impeached—Samuel Chase, in 1804. Chase was acquitted by the Senate a year later. He was impeached over his partisan rhetoric.
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The President can appoint Justices while the Senate is in recess
The President nominates a candidate when a vacancy opens on the Court, as outlined in Article II of the U.S. Constitution. The Senate Judiciary Committee then considers the nomination, and after a pre-hearing investigative stage, it holds public hearings to assess the nominee's qualifications, background, and judicial philosophy. The Judiciary Committee then decides whether to report the nomination to the full Senate, which will vote on whether to confirm or reject the nominee.
However, the Constitution also allows the President to appoint Justices while the Senate is in recess. This power is derived from Article II, Section 2, Clause 3, also known as the Recess Appointments Clause, which states: "The President shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next Session." This means that the President can make temporary appointments to fill vacancies without requiring the "advice and consent" of the Senate. These recess appointments were intended to ensure the continued functioning of the federal government when the Senate is not in session.
The Supreme Court has interpreted the Recess Appointments Clause broadly, holding that it applies to both inter-session and intra-session recesses. However, the Court has not provided a definitive answer on how long a recess must be to trigger the President's appointment power. Instead, it has relied on historical practice, suggesting that a recess of more than three days but less than ten days is typically too short for a recess appointment.
While the President has the authority to make recess appointments, these appointments are temporary and must be confirmed by the Senate when it reconvenes. Recess appointments have been historically disfavored, and President Dwight D. Eisenhower is the most recent example of a President appointing a Supreme Court Justice through this method, including Chief Justice Earl Warren.
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Frequently asked questions
The President of the United States nominates a person to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court.
The nomination is referred to the United States Senate, where the Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing where the nominee provides testimony and responds to questions from members of the panel.
The Judiciary Committee decides whether to report the nomination favorably to the full Senate, report it unfavorably, or report it without a recommendation. The full Senate will then vote on whether to confirm or reject the nominee.
Justices generally hold tenure for life, as long as they maintain "good behavior." They can only be removed from office by impeachment.
