It takes 4 minutes to be a Justice
on Feb 16, 2006 at 2:28 pm
Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr., took his seat on the Supreme Court’s bench for the first time Thursday afternoon near the close of a four-minute investiture ceremony in the Court’s ornate chamber. With all of his new colleagues except Justice John Paul Stevens attending, Alito took the Judicial Oath after his formal appointment papers were read aloud. That is one of two oaths a new Justice must take; Alito actually had taken the oaths previously, so he has been working as a Justice. He is the 110th Justice to serve on the Court.
The ceremony began after Alito had taken a seat in the left front of the chamber, occupying a chair once used by Chief Justice John Marshall. His commission, presented to the Court by Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, was read, and Alito then was escorted to the center of the bench to take the oath at 2:04 p.m. After a brief, quite formal welcome by Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., Alito moved to his seat at the far right end of the bench, as seen from the audience.
He replaces retired Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. Because O’Connor was second-ranking in seniority among the Associate Justices (after Stevens), her departure meant that all of the other Justices but Stevens shifted sides of the bench: Justice Antonin Scalia, now second in seniority among the Associates, moved from left of center to O’Connor’s old seat right of center, next to the Chief Justice. Justices Anthony M. Kennedy, Clarence Thomas and Stephen G. Breyer moved to the left side of the bench from the right, while Justices David H. Souter and Ruth Bader Ginsburg moved to the right, joined there by Alito.
After the ceremony, Roberts and Alito appeared at the front of the Courthouse. Chatting amiably, they walked down the stairs before cameras, paused briefly, and then Roberts walked away as Alito was joined by members of his family for more photos.
Alito will participate in his first Conference of the Justices in private, Friday morning. As the junior Justice, it is Alito’s duty to answer the door of the Conference Room — no aides attend the sessions — and to report the results of the Conference to the Court Clerk.
Among the major items awaiting Alito and his colleagues Friday are the government appeal seeking to salvage the federal ban on so-called “partial birth abortions,” a government plea to dismiss the pending challenge to the war crimes “military commissions” set up for war-on-terrorism suspects, and the appeal by U.S. citizen Jose Padilla challenging the President’s power to order his detention as an “enemy combatant” after he was captured on U.S. soil.
Chief Justice Roberts is not expected to take part in the Court’s consideration of the military commission case, since he sat on that case as a judge on the D.C. Circuit Court. He has taken himself out of the process when the Court issued earlier orders in that case, including the grant of review.
