Appointment of Supreme Court Justices

Question 1

5 stages

Answer 1

•Vacancy
•Search for nominee
•Announcement
•Confirmation Hearings
•Confirmation Vote

Question 2

Vacancy

Answer 2

Vacancy becomes available through voluntary retirement, death or impeachment (not yet happened)
-Rare due to security of tenure

Question 3

Search for a new nominee

Answer 3

•EXOP search for and interview shortlisted candidates (vetting process is very extensive)
•Congressmen can mention potential nominees
•Interest groups (Federalist Society- Cons, Constitution Society- Lib) can suggest nominations

Question 4

Announcement

Answer 4

•Large publicity event
-Photo opportunity, has no constitutional significance

Question 5

Confirmation Hearing

Answer 5

Senate Judiciary Committee hold a confirmation hearing
•Supporters and critics will give evidence
•Interest groups can also provide evidence
•Committee then makes a recomendatory vote (not a real vote) which is seen as a foreword for how the Senate will vote
*Hijacked by hyperpartisanship
*Reflects party composition in the Senate
-Eg, Democrats walked out of the Kavanaugh hearing and boycotted Coney Barrett’s hearing

Question 6

Confirmation Vote

Answer 6

•Nomination debated and voted on in the whole Senate
•Simple majority needed to secure confirmation
•Filibuster removed in 2017

Question 7

Factors affecting how the President chooses their candidate

Answer 7

Judicial ability
Ideology
Social Characteristics
Divided v United gov (Senate only)

Question 8

Judicial ability

Answer 8

•Need specific expertise to succeed in SCOTUS
•Most come from fed CoA
(all bar 1-Kagan)
•Several are former Law professors
(Coney Barrett- Notre Dame Law School)

Question 9

Ideology

Answer 9

•Reflect presidents ideology
•Decisions on wedge issues (guns, abortion, death penalty)
•Reps will choose a conservative/ strict constructionist
•Dems will choose a liberal/ loose constructionist

Question 10

Social Characteristics

Answer 10

•Mindful to retain some social mix to courts
•Obama nominated two women (Sotomaya and Kagan)
•Biden (Ketanji Brown Jackson- first African American woman)

Question 11

Divided v United gov (senate only)

Answer 11

•If the senate is not controlled by their party, pres may choose a more moderate nominee (eg Obama with Kagan)
•If senate is Presidents own party, they can choose an more ideologically bolder candidate (Trump and Coney Barrett)

Question 12

Why is the nomination so important? (use for AO2/3)

Answer 12

•Infrequent appointments (Average every 2-3yrs , 1994-2005 no vacancies)
•Security of tenure/average age of justices is decreasing (Coney Barrett was 48)
•Small membership allows for greater influence (Court remained at 9 justices which means only 5 is needed for a majority opinion)
•Judicial review powers are significant (Affect rights/ liberties)

Question 13

Controversial appointments

Answer 13

•Bork was rejected by the senate in 1987 (too political and linked too closely to Nixon during Watergate)
•Kavanaugh accused of serious sexual assault during his hearings, claiming they were a political ploy to stop him being confirmed (he was, at a vote of 50-48)
•Trump nominated Coney Barrett after death of Liberal Ruth BG, criticised for hypocrisy (said Garlands was too close to election, was even closer. Susan Collins didn’t vote with Reps