The Supreme Court and its Brief History

 

In 1789, President George Washington signed the Judiciary Act into law, creating what is arguably the most powerful lawful body in the present world. As a vital part of the checks and balances within the U.S. government, the Supreme Court has the important job of making sure that the Legislative and Executive branches are functioning within the Constitutional powers given to them. While the first Supreme Court consisted of six justices, it was later determined that there may be a minimum of five justices and a maximum of ten. In 1869, the Supreme Court was set to nine justices and has remained at that number since. The Supreme Court has been responsible for ensuring that laws that the Legislative branch passes, are constitutionally correct and for over 100 years since its birth, the Supreme Court was required to hold court twice a year in each judicial circuit. In its early days, they were required to take every case given to them; however, this has since changed which has allowed the court to determine which cases they will review. Being the highest court system in the United States, it is no surprise that the Supreme Court has made some of the most influential decisions in the country’s history. For example, in Brown v. Board of Education, they banned school segregation, in Miranda v. Arizona they determined that it was required for police officers to state, “you have the right to remain silent”, and in Loving v. Virginia, they abolished prohibitions against interracial marriage. Unfortunately, like most things in life, there are also decisions made for the worst. In 1857 they voted to deny African American slaves’ citizenship, in 1896 they voted to continue state segregation laws, and even voted to uphold Japanese American camps during WWII. Throughout its life, 115 justices have served on the court until their death or retirement, and what started with 6 justices guided by chief justice John Jay has transformed and developed into today’s 9 justices guided by chief justice John Roberts, Jr. The Supreme Court has helped to guide our nation throughout some of the most complex and controversial topics that have arisen throughout our history and will (hopefully) continue to do so until the death of this nation.