A Brief History of the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of the United States is regarded as the highest judicial body in the country. The United States Supreme Court leads the federal judiciary and administers various rulings on violations of legal code.

The Supreme Court consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices; the Associate Justices are nominated by the President of the United States and confirmed by majority vote of the Senate.

The History of the Supreme Court is organized based on era; these particular eras are named after the Chief Justice of that particular time frame.

The earliest Courts within the Supreme Court were run under Chief Justices, Rutledge, Jay and Ellsworth during 1789-1801. At this time, the Supreme Court heard few cases; furthermore the Court initially lacked a home and any sense of real prestige.

The Supreme Court, and the prestige or reputation attached, dramatically altered during the Marshall Court (1801-1835). During this era, the Supreme Court was declared the supreme arbiter of the United States Constitution. The Marshall Court made several important rulings which gave shape and substance to the constitutional balance of power between the federal government and the states.

As time passed, the Supreme Court gained administrative and authoritative power and through its numerous court decisions, laid the interpretative framework for which the United States Constitution was built off. Presently, during the Roberts Court, the Supreme Court has dealt with many issues concerning anti-trust legislation, abortion, the death penalty, the Fourth Amendment, free speech of high school students as well as government employees, military detainees, voting rights, school desegregation, and campaign financing.