Q 01/05

How many justices have sat on the U.S. Supreme Court since 1869?

A) 9

B) 11

C) 13

D) 15

Answer · why

A) 9

The number has changed six times; the Judiciary Act of 1869 fixed it at nine.

Q 02/05

The Judiciary Act of 1789 originally set the Supreme Court at how many justices?

A) Six

B) Seven

C) Nine

D) Twelve

Answer · why

A) Six

President Washington signed it on 24 September 1789, creating one chief justice and five associates.

Q 03/05

Who was the first Chief Justice of the United States?

A) John Marshall

B) John Jay

C) John Rutledge

D) Oliver Ellsworth

Answer · why

B) John Jay

He left the court in 1795 to become governor of New York, a job he apparently found more appealing.

Q 04/05

Where did the Supreme Court hold its first session, in February 1790?

A) Philadelphia

B) Washington, D.C.

C) New York City

D) Boston

Answer · why

C) New York City

It met at the Royal Exchange, since New York was then the national capital.

Q 05/05

Which 1803 case established judicial review, letting courts strike down unconstitutional laws?

A) Marbury v. Madison

B) McCulloch v. Maryland

C) Gibbons v. Ogden

D) Fletcher v. Peck

Answer · why

A) Marbury v. Madison

The dispute began with a batch of 'midnight' justice-of-the-peace commissions John Adams signed two days before leaving office.