Appointment of Supreme Court Justices
How the Process Works
The appointment of a Supreme Court justice is an event of major significance in American politics. Each appointment to the nine-member Court is of consequence because of the enormous judicial power that the Court exercises, separate from, and independent of, the Executive and Legislative branches. While “on average, a new justice joins the Court almost every two years,” the time at which any given appointment will be made to the Court is unpredictable. Appointments may be infrequent (with a vacancy on the Court occurring only once or twice, or never at all, during a particular President’s years in office) or…
