From its creation under the U.S. Constitution, the federal judiciary was meant to be an objective arbiter of the federal system. To partly ensure that role, federal judges were given lifetime tenure on account of ‘good behavior’.
According to the U.S. Constitution’s Article III [federal] judges “hold their office during good behavior,” which means they have a lifetime appointment, except under very limited circumstances. Article III judges can be removed from office only through impeachment by the House of Representatives and conviction by the Senate. Article III judgeships are created by legislation enacted by Congress.
Overall, Article III of the Constitution governs the appointment, tenure, and payment of Supreme Court justices, and federal circuit and district judges. These judges, often referred to as “Article III judges,” are nominated by the president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
Over the years as the judiciary has become a very important actor in resolving disputes between the other two branches of government (executive and legislative) as well as having the final say on major societal issues in the U.S, it also has attracted a lot of criticism. Increasingly, federal courts, of which the U.S. Supreme Court sits at the apex, find themselves in the unenviable position of being scrutinized from all sides and its very independence and role of objective arbiter of constitutional questions under intense questioning.
In that larger debate, one dominant issue revolves around the lifetime tenure of federal judges. While many are for it; others are firmly against its continuation. The following writing assignment will examine that question.
discuss whether the current system of life tenure for federal judges is still worth maintaining or, alternatively, whether the U.S. should seek to limit life tenure for federal judges through term limits, whether through a constitutional amendment or an act of Congress, whichever is applicable.
If the U.S. chooses to keep it, what are the reasons in your expert opinion stand for maintaining the current system of life tenure. Likewise, if the U.S. aims to constitutionally or legislatively alter it, for what reasons should it change it? Furthermore, which proposal(s) among the multiple ones being put forward stand as the one(s) most likely to ‘depoliticize’ the federal courts?
Excluding, the title and the references page, student individual essay should be exactly 1,500 words, No more, no less. This word count only includes the main body of the paper (from the paper introduction to the conclusion). Please put that word count at the top of the paper.
The essay should be written in Times New Roman, double-spaced and in APA format, with parenthetical citations and a Reference List at the end. A cover page is not necessary.
Again, please cite all sources you use. Students must use at least four sources
