The Chase Court

SCOTUS
Cases by term
	2024-2025 term2023-2024 term2022-2023 term2021-2022 term2020-2021 term2019-2020 term2018-2019 term2017-2018 term2016-2017 term2015-2016 termSubmit
Judgeships
	Posts: 9
	Judges: 9
Judges
	Chief: John Roberts
	Active: Samuel Alito, Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch, Ketanji Brown Jackson, Elena Kagan, Brett Kavanaugh, John Roberts, Sonia Sotomayor, Clarence Thomas

The Chase Court lasted from December 1864 to May 1873, during the presidencies of Abraham Lincoln (R), |Andrew Johnson (D), and Ulysses S. Grant (R).

Salmon Portland Chase was nominated as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States in 1864 by President Abraham Lincoln. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 6, 1864, and was commissioned on the same day. Chase was the sixth Chief Justice in the history of the Supreme Court. Chase served as Chief Justice until his death on May 7, 1873.^[1]

About Chief Justice Salmon Chase

President Lincoln nominated Chase to the court after he served as Secretary of the Treasury from 1861 to 1864. Chase previously served as a United States Senator for Ohio and also as governor of the state. In 1860, he challenged President Lincoln for the Republican nomination for president.^[2]^[3]

Associate justices

The justices in the following table served on the court during Chase's tenure as Chief Justice.

Tenure	Justice	Nominated By
01/09/1835 - 07/05/1867	James Moore Wayne	Andrew Jackson (D)
03/08/1837 - 05/30/1865	John Catron	Andrew Jackson (D)
02/13/1845 - 11/28/1872	Samuel Nelson	James Polk (D)
08/04/1846 - 01/31/1870	Robert Cooper Grier	James Polk (D)
01/12/1858 - 07/25/1881	Nathan Clifford	James Buchanan (D)
07/16/1862 - 10/13/1890	Samuel Freeman Miller	Abraham Lincoln (R)
12/08/1862 - 03/04/1877	David Davis	Abraham Lincoln (R)
01/24/1862 - 01/24/1881	Noah Haynes Swayne	Abraham Lincoln (R)
03/10/1863 - 12/01/1897	Stephen Johnson Field	Abraham Lincoln (R)
02/18/1870 - 12/14/1880	William Strong	Ulysses S. Grant (R)
03/21/1870 - 01/22/1892	Joseph Bradley	Ulysses S. Grant (R)
12/11/1872 - 01/27/1882	Ward Hunt	Ulysses S. Grant (R)

Major cases

Mississippi v. Johnson (1866)

President Andrew Johnson vetoed the Reconstruction Acts passed by Congress; Congress overrode the veto. However, the State of Mississippi wanted to delay Reconstruction, so they appealed to the Supreme Court. Mississippi argued that the Acts were unconstitutional and asked for an injunction, preventing them from being enforced. On April 15, 1867, the Court ruled unanimously that it had no jurisdiction to stop the president from performing his official duties related to the Acts, that the president's duties were not ministerial, and an attempt to interfere by a judicial body would be improper.^[4]

Cummings v. Missouri (1867)

After the Civil War, individuals in specific professions were required to take an oath of loyalty to the Union by the State of Missouri and Congress. Several individuals challenged this requirement. On January 14, 1867, the court held that both the national and state laws were unconstitutional. Justice Stephen Johnson Field authored the court's majority opinion.^[5]

Georgia v. Stanton (1868)

The State of Georgia sued the U.S. Secretary of War and two of his generals in order to prevent enforcement of the Reconstruction Acts following the Civil War. The case originated under the court's original jurisdiction. On February 10, 1868, the court held that the questions presented were outside the bounds of judicial inquiry. Justice Samuel Nelson delivered the majority opinion of the court.^[6]

Texas v. White (1869)

In 1851, the Congress authorized the transfer of $10 million in United States bonds to the State of Texas. Following the Civil War, the U.S. government alleged that the Confederate States of America state legislature illegally sold the bonds during the war. The U.S. government attempted to reclaim the bonds, and Texas sued to stop the recovery. In a 5-3 ruling on April 12, 1869, the court held that Texas did have standing to sue the U.S. government, that Texas legislature's acts were null, and that Texas had continued to be a state following its secession and before rejoining the United States. Chief Justice Chase delivered the majority opinion of the court.^[7]

Veazie Bank v. Fenno (1869)

In 1866, Congress passed a ten percent tax on state banknotes circulated and paid after August 1, 1866. Veazie Bank, incorporated in Maine, was taxed for its notes in circulation. The bank declined to pay the tax, challenging that it was unconstitutional. Tax collector Fenno attempted to collect the tax, the bank paid under protest, and then the bank filed suit for reimbursement. The bank unsuccessfully sued the commissioner of internal revenue and then sued Fenno in a lower court. In 1869 in a 6-2 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the case that the Act was not a direct tax and that Congress was authorized to tax the banknotes. The court also ruled that the U.S. government was authorized to provide a national currency.^[8]^[9]^[10]

About the court

See also: Supreme Court of the United States

The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the country and leads the judicial branch of the federal government. It is often referred to by the acronym SCOTUS.^[11]

The Supreme Court consists of nine justices: the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices. The justices are nominated by the president and confirmed with the "advice and consent" of the United States Senate per Article II of the United States Constitution. As federal judges, the justices serve during "good behavior," which means that justices have tenure for life unless they are removed by impeachment and subsequent conviction.^[12]

On January 27, 2022, Justice Stephen Breyer officially announced he would retire at the start of the court's summer recess.^[13]^[14] Breyer assumed senior status on June 30, 2022.^[15] Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed to fill the vacancy by the Senate in a 53-47 vote on April 7, 2022.^[16] Click here to read more.

The Supreme Court is the only court established by the United States Constitution (in Article III); all other federal courts are created by Congress.

The Supreme Court meets in Washington, D.C., in the United States Supreme Court building. The Supreme Court's yearly term begins on the first Monday in October and lasts until the first Monday in October the following year. The court generally releases the majority of its decisions in mid-June.^[12]

Number of seats on the Supreme Court over time

See also: History of the Supreme Court

Number of Justices	Set by	Change
Chief Justice + 5 Associate Justices	Judiciary Act of 1789
Chief Justice + 4 Associate Justices	Judiciary Act of 1801 (later repealed)	-1
Chief Justice + 6 Associate Justices	Seventh Circuit Act of 1807	+2
Chief Justice + 8 Associate Justices	Eighth and Ninth Circuits Act of 1837	+2
Chief Justice + 9 Associate Justices	Tenth Circuit Act of 1863	+1
Chief Justice + 6 Associate Justices	Judicial Circuits Act of 1866	-3
Chief Justice + 8 Associate Justices	Judiciary Act of 1869	+2