Lifetime tenure has pushed the average age of judicial nominees down as presidents appoint younger justices in hopes they will serve for many decades.
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Unlike in most countries, US Supreme Court justices enjoy life tenure. Some legal scholars believe that centuries-old custom, meant to protect judicial independence, no longer serves the public.
Political pressure is focusing on the makeup of the U.S. Supreme Court.
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With Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination, Trump has fulfilled his pledge to replace the late justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg with a woman. But female judges don’t all decide alike any more than male judges do.