Chief Justice
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Categories: Supreme Court of the United States | Chief Justice of the United States
The Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the Judicial Branch of the government of the United States, and presides over the Supreme Court of the United States. The position is currently held by William H. Rehnquist, who replaced Warren Burger upon the latter's retirement in 1986.
The office is often but incorrectly referred to as "Chief Justice of the Supreme Court." The United States Code specifies the title as "Chief Justice of the United States," and thus, not just of the Court itself. The title changed at the suggestion of Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase, who wished to emphasize the Court's role as a coequal branch of government. By contrast, the other eight members of the Court are Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, not "Associate Justices of the United States."
The Chief Justice, like the associate justices, is nominated by the President and confirmed to sit on the court by the U.S. Senate. Some Chief Justices, like William H. Rehnquist, were elevated by the President after having served previously on the bench as an Associate Justice. Most others, like William Howard Taft (a former President himself) and Earl Warren, were nominated to the highest bench without any previous experience on the Court.
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Duties
In addition to the duties of the Associate Justices, the Chief Justice of the United States has the following duties:
- If the Chief Justice is in the majority on a Supreme Court case, he or she may decide to write the Opinion of the Court, or may assign it to an associate justice of his or her choice.
- Presides when the Senate tries impeachments of the President of the United States
- Two Chief Justices, Salmon P. Chase and William Rehnquist, have had the duty of presiding over Presidential impeachments and trials--Chase in 1868 over the proceedings of President Andrew Johnson and Rehnquist in 1999 over the proceeding against Bill Clinton.
- Presides over the impeachment trial of the Vice President if the Vice President is serving as Acting President (not a Constitutional responsibility but a rule of the Senate).
- Officiates at the inauguration of the President of the United States. This is a traditional, not a constitutional, responsibility of the Chief Justice. All federal and state judges, as well as notaries public, are empowered by law to administer oaths and affirmations.
- Serves as the Chancellor of the Smithsonian Institution.
- Serves as the head of the Judicial Conference of the United States, the chief administrative body of the U.S. federal courts. The Judicial Conference is empowered by the Rules Enabling Act to promulgate rules to ensure the smooth operation of the federal courts. Major portions of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Evidence have been adopted by most state legislatures and are considered canonical by American law schools.
- Appoints members of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.
List of Chief Justices
- * Denotes interim Chief Justice
- ** Denotes elevation from Associate Justice
Related articles
References
- This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "Chief Justice of the United States". Unless this article is re-written from scratch it must include this citation (See Wikipedia:Copyrights).
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