How Well Do You Know the Supreme Court?

TRUE or FALSE? The Constitution sets the number of justices at nine.

• true

• False

Name the nine justices currently on the Court.

Which justices, if any, had no prior judicial experience before joining the Court?

TRUE or FALSE? The chief justice is always the longest-serving justice.

• True

• False

Court watchers are typically hesitant to predict voting patterns among justices because the labels of “liberal” and “conservative” are not always clear or consistent, and justices are not always in one “camp” or another. However, typically, which justices tend to be considered most “conservative”?

Which justices tend to be considered most “liberal”?

Which justice(s) tend(s) to be considered a swing voter(s)—sometimes voting with liberals and sometimes voting with conservatives?

TRUE or FALSE? Most experts who study the Court believe that the primary reason the Court decides to hear a case is to correct a legal error made by a court below.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

The primary reason the Court decides to hear a case is to resolve a conflict between lower courts over a particular legal question. The U.S. Supreme Court is not a court of error and does not attempt to correct legal errors from other courts.

Approximately how many cases are appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court each year? Approximately how many are accepted for briefing and oral argument? Approximately what percent are accepted

Answer explanation

In recent years, the Court has received approximately 6,500–7,500 petitions for certiorari each term and has averaged about 65–75 decisions per term. Generally, less than 1% of petitions are accepted for review and decision. For the 2022–2023 Term (OT 22), the Court granted 60 petitions and dismissed one.

TRUE OR FALSE? When the Supreme Court decides not to hear a case (denies certiorari) it is saying that it agrees with the lower court’s opinion and that the lower court decision should become a precedent.

• true

• false