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To answer a question about the U.S. government, we usually head straight to the official site of that office or branch, which can be found in the relevant category of the Yahoo! Directory. However, we found the official U.S. Supreme Court web site a little lacking in this area. The site offered plenty of detail about current cases, but not much on the Chief Justice's position. What we did find was the Constitutional reference for the court itself. Article III, Section 1, says the judicial power of the country is vested in one Supreme Court, under which exist lower courts. The number of judges on the Supreme Court is not specified
in the Constitution, nor is the position of Chief Justice even mentioned. Back in the Supreme Court category of the Directory, the Supreme Court Historical Society site came to the rescue by explaining the role of the Chief Justice. When the first Supreme Court was convened in 1790, six judges were appointed, and one of them was assigned the chief position, making him the presiding officer of the court with the highest seniority among the justices. Since the first court, various pieces of
federal code have assigned many administrative duties to the Chief Justice, and the position became the administrative leader of the entire federal judicial system. Specific duties range from assigning him or herself and the other justices to the federal circuits to selecting court officers such as the curator and public information officer. The Chief Justice also writes an annual report about the federal judiciary, which he or she presents to Congress. By virtue of his position, the Chief Justice is the chair of the Judicial Conference and the Federal Judicial Center and oversees the Administrative Office of the U. S. Courts. These organizations monitor different aspects of the federal judiciary.
The Chief Justice is also honored with a position on the board of the National Gallery of Art, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Hirshorn Museum. In addition, as the senior-most judge of the court, the Chief Justice enters the courtroom first and casts the first vote when the judges deliberate. If the Chief Justice is in the majority of the opinion that the court will issue, he may write the decision himself or he will assign another justice to write it. If he is in the minority on the opinion, the most senior judge in the majority will write the decision.
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