The Supreme Court, the final arbiter of justice in the United States

In a stately building across from the Capitol in Washington, the Supreme Court acts as final arbiter on legal issues fundamental to United Stateswhich may include the death penalty, minority rights, racism, and electoral disputes.

Created under article III of the Constitution, the court consists of a president and eight associate judges, all appointed for life.

President Joe Biden on Friday nominated Ketanji Brown Jackson as the first black woman in history to serve on the high court. She still must receive the Senate’s endorsement at a confirmation hearing.

Jackson was appointed to replace the progressive Stephen Breyer, who will retire at the end of June, so if his appointment is confirmed, the ideological composition of the highest court will not change, with six of the nine members of a conservative tendency.

Some of its members decide to retire and others hold office until their death, such as the progressive Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in 2020 at the age of 87 and who became the oldest acting judge.

The court today has three conservatives appointed by Biden’s predecessor, Donald Trump.

Like all public officials and presidents in the United States, Supreme Court justices can be impeached and removed from office if they are found guilty of treason, corruption or other serious crimes, something that has never happened before.

The Senate decides

The court held its first session in 1790 and judges have served an average of about 15 years.

However, some serve much longer. Anthony Kennedy, who retired in 2018, was appointed in 1987 by then-President Ronald Reagan and confirmed the following year.

Any candidate for a high court justice must be nominated by the president and then survive a confirmation hearing by the Senate Judiciary Committee. Finally, it must be approved by the full Senate.

For an issue to reach the Supreme Court, the plaintiff must challenge the constitutionality of a ruling from a federal court of appeals or, in some cases, from a state court.

However, the judges are the ones who decide which cases they will admit to examine.

The high court opens its annual session on the first Monday in October and meets until the end of June.

After the outbreak of the coronavirus, he held hearings remotely before resuming in person last October.

“Hey! Hey! Hey!”

The magistrates enter the courtroom at 10:00 local time for public sessions.

The sound of the gavel indicates that those present must stand up and remain so until the judges in their black robes settle in their seats.

The bailiff of the court announces the beginning of the session with the traditional phrase: “The honorable, the chief justice and associate justices of the Supreme Court of the United States. Hey! Hey! ¡Oyez!”, an old expression that means “listen”, with which silence and attention are requested.

“Anyone who has business before the honorable Supreme Court of the United States is urged to come forward and pay attention, because the court is already seated. God save America and this honorable court!”

After receiving the written arguments of both parties to the litigation, as well as the testimony of the non-litigating amicus curiae (“friend of the court”), the lawyers representing each party have only 30 minutes to argue their case, during which time judges can ask questions.

The Supreme Court sometimes returns cases to a lower court for reconsideration, and judges can also hear urgent requests, such as an appeal to stop or postpone an impending execution.

Court decisions are approved by majority and their opinions are written by one of the judges. The other justices can add their own comments or, if they oppose the decision approved by the majority, write a dissenting opinion.