Supreme Court, U.S.

Social Networks of the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court heard its first case on February 1, 1790, in the Merchants Exchange Building in New York City, where the federal government was situated. When the capital was moved to Philadelphia in December, the Supreme Court moved there as well, hearing cases in Independence Hall and other locations until the establishment of Washington, D.C., in 1800. At that point, the Supreme Court moved with the rest of the federal government to the new capital city, taking up its home in the Capitol building, where it remained until 1935. Since the opening of the Cass Gilbert–designed Supreme Court Building in 1935, the Supreme Court and its justices have been located there, with space provided for a publications office, exhibit halls, a cafeteria, a great hall, the courtroom, chambers for the justices, offices for the law clerks, a library, and a gymnasium. The Supreme Court Police, an independent force, is also present in the building to provide security services for the Supreme Court and the justices. The intimacy of the Supreme Court Building, a result more of the high level of security and dedication to specialized work than of the scale of the structure, creates a tight social network made up of those who work in the building. The confidential nature of the work done by the justices, their clerks, and other court employees creates an atmosphere where a great deal of trust and cooperation are prompted among those comprising the social network. These bonds continue after clerks have left the employment of the Supreme Court.

Centrality of the Court in American Law

John Jay was the first chief justice of the Supreme Court, serving until 1795, when he was succeeded by John Rutledge, who served briefly in 1795, and then Oliver Ellsworth, who left the Supreme Court in 1800. The appointment of John Marshall in 1801 changed the Supreme Court irreversibly, making it a significant part of the federal government and an equal to the executive [Page 834]and legislative branches. Jay, Rutledge, and Ellsworth had all been members of powerful social networks that established and governed the United States. Although also considered a founding father, Marshall's background in the Virginia House of Delegates provided him with a different perspective than his predecessors. Appointed to the Supreme Court in the waning days of John Adams's presidency, Marshall was confirmed by the Senate as chief justice on January 27, 1801, and received his commission one week later. Marshall greatly expanded the power of the judiciary with a handful of influential cases, such as Marbury v. Madison, decided in 1803. Marbury v. Madison established the principle of judicial review in the United States, specifically holding that the Supreme Court could overturn as unconstitutional a law passed by Congress. In Marbury and other related decisions, Marshall and his colleagues established the Supreme Court as the ultimate arbiter of whether or not a law or other governmental act was constitutional.

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