Nine justices sit on the U.S. Supreme Court: Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., and Associate Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito, Jr., Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Neil M. Gorsuch, Brett M. Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, and Ketanji Brown Jackson. Each was nominated by a president and confirmed by the Senate, and each holds the seat for life. Federal law fixes the Court’s size at nine and requires at least six justices to form a quorum.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1 – Number of Justices; Quorum The current bench reflects appointments from five different presidents, spanning 1991 to 2022.
The Nine Justices in Order of Seniority
Seniority on the Court is measured by length of service, with the Chief Justice ranked first regardless of when he joined. The list below follows that order.2Supreme Court of the United States. Current Members
- John G. Roberts, Jr., Chief Justice. Born 1955. Nominated by President George W. Bush; seated in 2005.
- Clarence Thomas. Born 1948. Nominated by President George H. W. Bush; seated in 1991. The longest-serving member of the current Court.
- Samuel A. Alito, Jr. Born 1950. Nominated by President George W. Bush; seated in 2006.
- Sonia Sotomayor. Born 1954. Nominated by President Barack Obama; seated in 2009. The first Hispanic justice in the Court’s history.
- Elena Kagan. Born 1960. Nominated by President Obama; seated in 2010.
- Neil M. Gorsuch. Born 1967. Nominated by President Donald J. Trump; seated in 2017.
- Brett M. Kavanaugh. Born 1965. Nominated by President Trump; seated in 2018.
- Amy Coney Barrett. Born 1972. Nominated by President Trump; seated in 2020. The youngest justice currently serving.
- Ketanji Brown Jackson. Born 1970. Nominated by President Joseph R. Biden; seated in 2022. The first Black woman to serve on the Court.
Every justice casts one vote, and each vote counts the same. The Chief Justice carries additional administrative duties for the federal court system, but on the merits of any given case his ballot is one of nine.
What Seniority Means Day to Day
Where a justice ranks in seniority shapes two visible parts of the job. The first is the bench itself. During oral arguments, the Chief Justice sits in the center chair. The most senior Associate Justice takes the seat to his immediate right, the next most senior takes the seat to his left, and the pattern continues outward until the most junior justice ends up at the far left of the bench.3Supreme Court of the United States. Supreme Court 101 – A Student’s Guide Anyone watching an argument can read the tenure order off the seating chart.
The second is the private conference where the justices discuss and vote on cases. The Chief Justice speaks first, and each Associate Justice follows in descending order of tenure. Voting runs the same way. When the Chief Justice is with the majority, he assigns who writes the opinion. When he is not, that assignment falls to the most senior justice in the majority.
Circuit Assignments Each Justice Handles
Beyond the full-bench work, each justice is individually assigned to one or more of the thirteen federal judicial circuits. In that role, the justice handles emergency applications from their assigned circuit, things like stay requests or temporary injunctions, when the full Court is not sitting. Coverage is not evenly split. The Chief Justice, for example, is assigned to the D.C. Circuit, the Fourth Circuit, and the Federal Circuit. Justice Kavanaugh covers both the Sixth and Eighth Circuits.4Supreme Court of the United States. Circuit Assignments
How a Seat Opens and Gets Filled
Article III of the Constitution says federal judges “shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour,” which in practice has always meant life tenure.5Legal Information Institute. U.S. Constitution Annotated – Good Behavior Clause Overview The design shields justices from political pressure: a judge who never faces reelection can rule on unpopular questions without fear for the job. A vacancy typically opens only when a justice retires, resigns, or dies in office.
Senior Status
Justices who want to step back without leaving the federal bench entirely can take “senior status.” Eligibility follows the informal “Rule of 80”: the justice’s age plus years of federal judicial service must total at least 80, with a minimum of 10 years of service. So a 70-year-old with 10 years qualifies, and so does a 65-year-old with 15.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 371 – Retirement on Salary; Retirement in Senior Status A justice who takes this path keeps full salary, takes on a reduced workload, and opens the seat for a new appointment. Retired justices usually sit by designation on lower federal appeals courts rather than continuing to hear Supreme Court cases.
Impeachment
The Constitution provides one route for involuntary removal. Article II, Section 4 subjects “all civil Officers of the United States,” Supreme Court justices included, to impeachment for treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.7Constitution Annotated. U.S. Constitution – Article II, Section 4 The House votes to impeach; the Senate then holds a trial, with conviction requiring a two-thirds vote of the senators present.8U.S. Senate. About Impeachment Only one justice has ever been impeached: Samuel Chase, in 1804. The Senate acquitted him the following year.9Federal Judicial Center. Samuel Chase Impeached No justice has been removed through impeachment.
Nomination and Confirmation
When a seat opens, the president nominates a replacement under the Appointments Clause of Article II, which requires the Senate’s advice and consent.10Congress.gov. U.S. Constitution – Article II, Section 2, Clause 2 The White House announcement triggers an FBI background investigation along with a review of the nominee’s legal writings, financial disclosures, and professional record.
The Senate Judiciary Committee then holds public hearings, questions the nominee, and votes on whether to send the nomination to the full Senate. Since 2017, a simple majority in the full Senate is all that is required to confirm. Before that change, nominees could face a 60-vote threshold to overcome a filibuster.
One point worth flagging, because it surprises many readers: the Constitution sets no qualifications for a Supreme Court justice. There is no minimum age, no citizenship rule, no residency requirement, and technically no requirement that a justice hold a law degree or have practiced law.11Supreme Court of the United States. Frequently Asked Questions – General Information Every justice confirmed in modern history has been a lawyer, and most have served as federal appellate judges before joining the Court, but those are norms rather than rules.
Once confirmed, a new justice takes two oaths. The constitutional oath is a pledge to support and defend the Constitution. The judicial oath commits the justice to “administer justice without respect to persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich.”12Supreme Court of the United States. Oaths of Office Only after both are administered does the justice officially join the Court and become the ninth member of the bench described above.