Setting the Size of the Supreme Court

Arizona State Law Journal, Vol. 41, p. 645, 2009

33 Pages Posted: 25 Mar 2010

See all articles by F. Andrew Hessick

F. Andrew Hessick

University of North Carolina School of Law

Samuel P. Jordan

Saint Louis University - School of Law

Date Written: Fall 2009

Abstract

As with any institutional feature, the size of the Supreme Court should be informed by a definition of functional goals. This article describes how the current size of the Supreme Court is largely untethered from any such definition, and it begins the process of understanding how size and Court performance might interact. To do so, it identifies a list of institutional goals for the Supreme Court and explores how changing the size of the Court promotes or obstructs the attainment of those goals. Given that the Court's institutional goals are numerous and occasionally in tension, there is no definitive answer to the question of how large the Court should be. Instead, the optimal size of the Court depends on how one views the relative importance of each institutional goal and how those goals should be balanced. Unfortunately, the current size of the Supreme Court is not attributable to a careful balancing of these institutional goals, but instead is due to political efforts to secure power on the Court. Consequently, a reconsideration of the Court's size in light of institutional considerations is long overdue.

Keywords: Supreme Court, Courts, Justices

Suggested Citation

Hessick, F. Andrew and Jordan, Samuel P., Setting the Size of the Supreme Court (Fall 2009). Arizona State Law Journal, Vol. 41, p. 645, 2009, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1576809 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1576809

F. Andrew Hessick (Contact Author)

University of North Carolina School of Law ( email )

Van Hecke-Wettach Hall, 160 Ridge Road
CB #3380
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3380
United States

Samuel P. Jordan

Saint Louis University - School of Law ( email )

100 N. Tucker Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63101
United States
3149772795 (Phone)

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
202
Abstract Views
2,544
Rank
272,294
PlumX Metrics