The Supreme Court, bastion of conservatism

[BigFatMeanie]

Why is it that people want term limits when their party isn't in power?

For the same reason they want to abolish the filibuster when their party is in power.

[UVACoug]

How is nominating 1 justice per 4 year term going to stack a court? If he’s lucky I guess that one justice will be a deciding vote in a historic decision. But then the next president gets the same chance to balance the court back. You still have to win a senate vote, which decreases the chance of a hard right/left justice.

Having term limits for SC justices is not a perfect solution. But I think it would be a better system than what we have now.

4 year gaps between appointments wouldn't work, unless the number of justices is decreased. To have 4 year gaps would mean each justice would be appointed to a 36-year term, which is too long. There would be too many deaths before the 36-year term is over. If justices were appointed to a single 18-year term, that would allow one new appointment every two years. I wouldn't be opposed to that. It's one of the better ideas that has been circulated. It would require a Constitutional amendment though, which isn't going to happen any time soon.

[UVACoug]

So make SC terms fixed? Like 8-12 years.

Should be longer, like 18-year terms. Or a mandatory retirement age. I think some predictability in when new appointments will need to be made would be a good thing. And a longer term would prevent justices from feeling the need to make "bold" decisions in order to have an impact.

[UVACoug]

How does that fix the appointment issue? All it does is make it obvious when the next appointment will come. See least now you don't exactly when a justice will die and a shot will open up. Could be during Trump's term, could be during Biden's. Could be neither.

I think knowing when the next appointment will come will make the Supreme Court a more salient issue in the minds of voters, which is a good thing in my mind. As it is now, no one has any idea whether the President they are voting for will need to appoint a new justice or who that justice might replace. If people knew, for a fact, that Justice Ginsburg's or Justice Thomas's term would be up during the next Presidential term, they can make their vote for President based on who they think would be the best person to choose the replacements.

[Jeff Lebowski]

SCOTUS term limits is a terrible idea. Sorry NWC.

[SeattleUte]

SCOTUS term limits is a terrible idea. Sorry NWC.

Why do you say that?

[Northwestcoug]

SCOTUS term limits is a terrible idea. Sorry NWC.

Whatevs. I’ll gladly take UVaC’s endorsement. Stick with modeling in your ivory tower!

[Non Sequitur]

Why do you say that?

If your term on the Supreme Court has an end date, you need to consider what your next gig will be. It makes you susceptible to currying favor with interests that can help you in your next thing. Doing away with term limits is the best way to curb justices succumbing to political influence.

[SeattleUte]

If your term on the Supreme Court has an end date, you need to consider what your next gig will be. It makes you susceptible to currying favor with interests that can help you in your next thing. Doing away with term limits is the best way to curb justices succumbing to political influence.

They have a generous pension for life, and the term can be for 20 years. After the Supreme Court, they don't want to go be partners in law firms.

On the other hand, the confirmation battles are greatly intensified because they are in for life.

As someone who is in federal court all the time, I can tell you that term limits in all the branches would reinvigorate the judiciary. What we have now is something tantamount to the LDS gerontocracy.

[SeattleUte]

SCOTUS term limits is a terrible idea. Sorry NWC.

What I thought. You don't know why.

[Non Sequitur]

They have a generous pension for life, and the term can be for 20 years. After the Supreme Court, they don't want to go be partners in law firms.

On the other hand, the confirmation battles are greatly intensified because they are in for life.

As someone who is in federal court all the time, I can tell you that term limits in all the branches would reinvigorate the judiciary. What we have now is something tantamount to the LDS gerontocracy.

Whatever its problems, the judicial branch is the least dysfunctional of the three branches. I'm not in a hurry to tweak with it.

[Jeff Lebowski]

What I thought. You don't know why.

Lol. You can't declare victory when someone ignores you. That's not how the internet works.

[Applejack]

They have a generous pension for life, and the term can be for 20 years. After the Supreme Court, they don't want to go be partners in law firms.

On the other hand, the confirmation battles are greatly intensified because they are in for life.

As someone who is in federal court all the time, I can tell you that term limits in all the branches would reinvigorate the judiciary. What we have now is something tantamount to the LDS gerontocracy.

Maybe, but there is already a revolving door problem for federal district judges that leave the bench (often) for partnership in a law firm which would be exacerbated by mandatory term limits. Imagine if LDS apostles had term limits! The corrupting influence of Seagull Book & Tape money would only increase!

[SeattleUte]

Maybe, but there is already a revolving door problem for federal district judges that leave the bench (often) for partnership in a law firm which would be exacerbated by mandatory term limits. Imagine if LDS apostles had term limits! The corrupting influence of Seagull Book & Tape money would only increase!

I disagree with your premise. In the WDWA, our youngest judge is 69, we have a judge over 90, one who's 85, a couple over 80. The majority are on senior status. The office is of a kind that is hard to relinquish. Cases rarely get tried anymore. I have a feeling the judges being too worn out has something to do with it. There are plenty of forces out there to bias a judge as it is, but if it's true that desire for a private law job is one of them, if what you say is true (again, I disagree), it seems that the problem exists regardless of term limits. We force airline pilots to retire at a given age. Judges at 70?

The founders' rationale for not electing judges was to de-politicize them. That would remain with term limits or mandatory retirement. And the Supreme Court (and sometimes lower level) confirmation circuses would be reduced. The only reason for lifetime appointments was in the eighteenth century we were still transitioning out of feudalism and nobility. Some founders wanted senators appointed for life. More democracy is better.

[Applejack]

I disagree with your premise. In the WDWA, our youngest judge is 69, we have a judge over 90, one who's 85, a couple over 80. The majority are on senior status. The office is of a kind that is hard to relinquish. Cases rarely get tried anymore. I have a feeling the judges being too worn out has something to do with it. There are plenty of forces out there to bias a judge as it is, but if it's true that desire for a private law job is one of them, if what you say is true (again, I disagree), it seems that the problem exists regardless of term limits. We force airline pilots to retire at a given age. Judges at 70?

The founders' rationale for not electing judges was to de-politicize them. That would remain with term limits or mandatory retirement. And the Supreme Court (and sometimes lower level) confirmation circuses would be reduced. The only reason for lifetime appointments was in the eighteenth century we were still transitioning out of feudalism and nobility. Some founders wanted senators appointed for life. More democracy is better.

No! I disagree with your premise!

Sounds like you want the people to elect their judges ("More democracy is better."): I think that has been an abject failure in state courts. Lifetime appointments have their limitations (old-foogies on the bench being one that you point out), but I think it makes for much more judicial independence than mandatory term limits. Democrats/Republicans would nominate their close allies (like they do now), but the allies would have to make political decisions in line with the democrats or republicans knowing that their next job would likely come from the people that nominated them.

Judges are political creatures-but term limits would make them more so.