The Supreme Court is one of the most influential political institutions in the United States. Learn how the United States Supreme Court is composed and what issues it deals with.
The Supreme Court of the United States has been the highest judicial body in the United States since 1790 and is located in Washington, D.C. In American usage, the court is abbreviated to USSC or SCOTUS.
There are nine justices on the United States Supreme Court appointed for life by the sitting US president. The court consists of the Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices.
Among the most famous members since the Supreme Court came into existence were Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who made a name for herself as an advocate for women's rights until she died in 2020, and the still-incumbent Brett Kavanaugh, whose public behavior continues to cause heated political and social debate.
If you aspire to become a judge in the Supreme Court, you should first make a name for yourself as a federal judge. These jurists have good chances of being nominated by the President of the United States for office in the Supreme Court.
After nomination by the US President, however, the candidates must first convince the Senate Judiciary Committee, which elevates them to office.
The following nine justices are currently members of the Supreme Court of the United States of America:
| Name | Function | Year of appointment | Appointend by US President |
| John Roberts | Chief Justice | 2005 | George W. Bush (R) |
| Clarence Thomas | Associate Justice | 1991 | George H. W. Bush (R) |
| Samuel Alito | Associate Justice | 2006 | George W. Bush (R) |
| Sonia Sotomayor | Associate Justice | 2009 | Barack Obama (D) |
| Elena Kagan | Associate Justice | 2010 | Barack Obama (D) |
| Neil Gorsuch | Associate Justice | 2017 | Donald Trump (R) |
| Brett Kavanaugh | Associate Justice | 2018 | Donald Trump (R) |
| Amy Coney Barrett | Associate Justice | 2020 | Donald Trump (R) |
| Ketanji Brown Jackson | Associate Justice | 2022 | Joe Biden (D) |
The passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a significant loss to the United States. For 27 years, she had been a member of the nation's highest court and established herself as its most prominent member.
Even before she was appointed a justice in 1993, RBG, as Ruth Bader Ginsburg is often called, had waged a decades-long fight for gender equality, which was a thorn in the side of the Republicans in particular until the very end.
RBG won great sympathy by being humorous and not mincing her words. For example, she justified her "nodding off" during the State of the Union address in 2015 by saying that the wine had just been too tasty the night before.
At 80-plus, RBG had become an icon for women of all ages, getting her documentary ("Notorious R.B.G."), an operetta, an enormous amount of press, and even regular parodies and skits on Saturday Night Live.
However, a disparaging remark about then-presidential candidate Donald Trump got Ruth Bader Ginsburg in trouble in 2016. Trump promptly responded to the remark stating he was a fake, with an angry tweet demanding Ginsburg’s resignation.
It began a feud between Trump and RBG over withheld tax returns and questioning Donald Trump's ability to govern, among other issues.
Ginsburg died of pancreatic cancer shortly before the election in 2020 at age 87. As her last wish before her death, RBG stated that she should not be replaced in office until a new president was elected. Trump immediately challenged that dying wish, claiming Democrats wrote it.
On October 26th, 2020, eight days before the presidential election, the US Senate confirmed that Amy Coney Barrett was to succeed Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The confirmation came just 30 days after her nomination, one of the shortest periods in Supreme Court history.