Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court, died at 87 due to complications from cancer.
There has been a debate over whether President Donald Trump should fill the vacant seat with the election only a few weeks away. However, Republican Senator Mitt Romney's support along with that of most other Republican senators means Trump will likely get to choose Ginsburg's replacement.
The Supreme Court may typically see fewer than 100 cases a year, but the court makes some of the most important decisions that affect everyday life in the US. For instance, Brown v. Board of Education formally banned racial segregation in schools, Roe v. Wade case was a landmark decision securing abortion rights, and Phillips v. Martin Marietta Corp. found companies cannot discriminate from hiring mothers of pre-school-age children.
Because Supreme Court Justices serve for life, the choice of who will join the other eight Supreme Court justices is a very serious decision.
Although there are no set requirements for appointment to the nation's highest court, there are clear educational and career patterns among recent justices. Of those who have been appointed since the late 1960s, all have, unsurprisingly, attended law school. Many of these justices studied at Harvard or Yale Law School. Studying political science or history as undergraduates have also been popular choices among these justices.
According to The Supreme Court Justice site, James F. Byrnes, who served on the Supreme Court from 1941 to 1942, was the "last justice to be appointed who did not attend any law school."
Several Supreme Court justices served as clerks to a judge after graduating law school. For instance, Chief Supreme Justice John Roberts clerked for Judge Henry Friendly and former Chief Justice William Rehnquist when the latter was an associate justice.
Many recent justices served on the US Court of Appeals prior to being appointed. Notably, many worked as judges in the District of Columbia circuit.
Additionally, the chief justice does not necessarily have to been an associate justice. However, five of the total 17 chief justices were previously associates per the official Supreme Court Justice website.
Read on to see the career paths of associate and chief justices who have been appointed in the last five decades.