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A New Supreme Court Justice! |
by Mya Kagan (whyzz writer) >> more about the author
August 8, 2009
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the country – after the Supreme Court makes a ruling, the decision is final and there is no other court to which a case can be taken.
The nine Justices (or “Judges”) of the Supreme Court serve on the court indefinitely; once a Justice is confirmed and sworn-in, he or she remains a Justice of the Supreme Court until choosing to retire.
In May of 2009, Supreme Court Justice David Souter announced his plans to retire. When a Justice leaves the Supreme Court, the President appoints a new nominee who is then considered by the U.S. Senate and sworn-in as a new Justice upon receiving the Senate’s majority vote.
President Obama’s nominee to replace Justice Souter was Sonia Sotomayer. Since being chosen as the nominee in May, the U.S. Senate has spent time interviewing Sotomayer and considering her history as a judge. – Because a Supreme Court Justice can influence so many different political issues and laws, the Senate always considers many different aspects of a Judge’s background before making their vote.
After careful evaluation, the Senate placed their vote on Thursday, August 6th, 2009. In a vote of 68-31, Judge Sotomayer was confirmed!
On Saturday, August 8th, Judge Sotomayer was officially sworn-in as the newest Supreme Court Justice. Her appointment to this position is quite historical – she is only the third woman to ever become a Supreme Court Judge, and the first Supreme Court Judge who is Hispanic!