Supreme Court justices in the United States serve lifetime appointments, meaning they hold their offices "during good behavior" as stated in Article III of the U.S. Constitution. This has been interpreted to mean justices serve until they die, resign, retire, or are impeached and removed from office
. Historically, the average tenure of a Supreme Court justice has been about 16 years, though this average has increased over time. Since the 1970s, the average tenure has risen to nearly 28 years, reflecting longer lifespans and career durations of modern justices
. The longest-serving Associate Justice was William O. Douglas, who served for over 36 years, and the longest-serving Chief Justice was John Marshall, who served for over 34 years
. There have been proposals to introduce term limits, such as limiting justices to 18-year terms, to address concerns about lifetime tenure leading to justices becoming disconnected from contemporary society and contributing to politicization of the Court
. In summary:
- Justices serve for life unless they resign, retire, die, or are impeached.
- Average tenure is about 16 years historically, increasing to nearly 28 years recently.
- Longest tenure was over 36 years.
- Term limits proposals exist but are not currently in place.
This lifetime tenure system is unique compared to state supreme courts, where justices often serve fixed terms ranging from 6 to 14 years with mandatory retirement ages
