[1][2] Article II, Section 2, Clause 2 of the Constitution grants plenary power to the president of the United States to nominate, and with the advice and consent of the United States Senate, appoint justices to the Supreme Court; justices have life tenure.
However, before a third vacancy occurred, the Judiciary Act of 1869 intervened, restoring the Court's size to nine members, where it has remained ever since.
[7] While the justices of the Supreme Court are appointed for life, many have retired or resigned.
Five individuals, who were confirmed for associate justice, were later appointed chief justice separately: John Rutledge,[a] Edward Douglass White,[b] Charles Evans Hughes,[a] Harlan F. Stone[b] and William Rehnquist.
Additionally, the progression of U.S. presidents is shown at the top of the timeline to give a more detailed historical context.