Did the Supreme Court always have 9 justices?

The Supreme Court has had nine justices since 1869, but that wasn’t always the case. In fact, the number of justices in the court fluctuated fairly often between its inception and 1869. Of course, the story of the court dates back to 1787 and the founding of the U.S. government system as we know it today.

Has there ever been a Supreme Court justice who was not a lawyer?

Associate Justice James F. Byrnes, whose short tenure lasted from June 1941 to October 1942, was the last Justice without a law degree to be appointed; Stanley Forman Reed, who served on the Court from 1938 to 1957, was the last sitting Justice from such a background.

Can you be a Supreme Court justice without a law degree?

A Justice does not have to be a lawyer or a law school graduate, but all Justices have been trained in the law. Many of the 18th and 19th century Justices studied law under a mentor because there were few law schools in the country. The last Justice to be appointed who did not attend any law school was James F.

Can Supreme Court Justices be fired?

The Constitution states that Justices “shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour.” This means that the Justices hold office as long as they choose and can only be removed from office by impeachment.

Who was the last Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?

According to wikipedia, the last Chief Justice, Judge William Rehnquist was initially an Associate Justice. President Reagan nominated him to replace the retiring Chief Justice at the time, Judge Warren Burger. When Judge Rehnquist passed away in 2005, Bush nominated someone outside of the Supreme Court, Judge John Roberts to become Chief Justice.

Can a retired Supreme Court justice serve as a judge?

List of Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States. A retired justice, according to the United States Code, is no longer a member of the Supreme Court, but remains eligible to serve by designation as a judge of a U.S. Court of Appeals or District Court, and many retired justices have served in these capacities.

Why is it so hard to choose a Supreme Court justice?

Choosing an existing Justice can be tricky because the have more publicized voting records and may not want the stress of facing another appointment. The Justices at the time were Stevens (85), O’Connor (75), Scalia (69), Kennedy (69), Souter (66), Thomas (57), Ginsburg (72), and Breyer (67).

How many Supreme Court justices are there in the United States?

Justices. Nine Justices make up the current Supreme Court: one Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices. The Honorable John G. Roberts, Jr. is the 17th Chief Justice of the United States, and there have been 102 Associate Justices in the Court’s history.