List of Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States by time in office

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

13,358 daysWilliam O. Douglasfrom 1939 to 1975
13,358 days
William O. Douglas
from 1939 to 1975
12,614 daysStephen Johnson Fieldfrom 1863 to 1897
12,614 days
Stephen Johnson Field
from 1863 to 1897
12,570 daysJohn Marshallfrom 1801 to 1835
12,570 days
John Marshall
from 1801 to 1835
12,447 daysHugo Blackfrom 1937 to 1971
12,447 days
Hugo Black
from 1937 to 1971
12,360 daysJohn Marshall Harlanfrom 1877 to 1911
12,360 days
John Marshall Harlan
from 1877 to 1911
548 daysJohn Robertssince 2005
548 days
John Roberts
since 2005
508 daysJohn Rutledgefrom 1790 to 1791 and in 1795
508 days
John Rutledge
from 1790 to 1791 and in 1795
452 daysJames F. Byrnesfrom 1941 to 1942
452 days
James F. Byrnes
from 1941 to 1942
424 daysSamuel Alitosince 2006
424 days
Samuel Alito
since 2006
163 daysThomas Johnsonfrom 1792 to 1793
163 days
Thomas Johnson
from 1792 to 1793

This is a list of U.S. Supreme Court Justices by time in office. This is based on the difference between dates; if counted by number of calendar days all the figures would be greater by the number of distinct periods of service (1 for most).

Rank by
length
of term
Justice Length
in days
Term of office
1 William O. Douglas 13,358 April 17, 1939November 12, 1975
2 Stephen Johnson Field 12,614 May 20, 1863December 1, 1897
3 John Marshall* 12,570 February 4, 1801July 6, 1835
4 Hugo Black 12,447 August 19, 1937September 17, 1971
5 John Marshall Harlan 12,360 December 10, 1877October 14, 1911
6 William J. Brennan 12,330 October 16, 1956July 20, 1990
7 William Rehnquist* 12,293+ January 7, 1972September 3, 2005+
8 Joseph Story 12,273 February 3, 1812September 10, 1845
9 James Moore Wayne 11,860 January 14, 1835July 5, 1867
10 John Paul Stevens 11,425 December 19, 1975–present
11 John McLean 11,406 January 11, 1830April 4, 1861
12 Byron White 11,396 April 16, 1962June 28, 1993
13 Bushrod Washington 11,252 February 4, 1799November 26, 1829
14 William Johnson 11,046 May 7, 1804August 4, 1834
15 Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. 10,627 December 8, 1902January 12, 1932
16 Roger B. Taney* 10,425 March 28, 1836October 12, 1864
17 Samuel Freeman Miller 10,311 July 21, 1862October 13, 1890
18 John Catron 10,256 May 1, 1837May 30, 1865
19 Samuel Nelson 10,136 February 27, 1845November 28, 1872
20 Edward Douglass White* 9,929+ March 12, 1894May 19, 1921+
21 Joseph McKenna 9,840 January 26, 1898January 5, 1925
22 Willis Van Devanter 9,647 January 3, 1911June 2, 1937
23 James Clark McReynolds 9,608 October 12, 1914January 31, 1941
24 Sandra Day O'Connor 8,894 September 25, 1981January 31, 2006
25 Harry Blackmun 8,821 June 9, 1970August 3, 1994
26 Thurgood Marshall 8,765 October 2, 1967October 1, 1991
27 Felix Frankfurter 8,611 January 30, 1939August 28, 1962
28 Nathan Clifford 8,586 January 21, 1858July 25, 1881
29 Robert Cooper Grier 8,575 August 10, 1846January 31, 1870
30 Gabriel Duvall 8,453 November 23, 1811January 14, 1835
31 Potter Stewart 8,298 October 14, 1958July 3, 1981
32 Louis Brandeis 8,288 June 5, 1916February 13, 1939
33 Joseph Philo Bradley 7,975 March 23, 1870January 22, 1892
34 Melville Fuller* 7,938 October 8, 1888July 4, 1910
35 Harlan Fiske Stone* 7,721+ March 2, 1925April 22, 1946+
36 Horace Gray 7,553 January 9, 1882September 15, 1902
37 William Cushing 7,527 February 2, 1790September 13, 1810
38 Antonin Scalia 7,491 September 26, 1986–present
39 Smith Thompson 7,413 September 1, 1823December 18, 1843
40 David Josiah Brewer 7,385 January 6, 1890March 28, 1910
41 William Rufus Day 7,196 March 2, 1903November 13, 1922
42 Anthony Kennedy 6,981 February 18, 1988–present
43 Stanley Forman Reed 6,965 January 31, 1938February 25, 1957
44 Noah Haynes Swayne 6,937 January 27, 1862January 24, 1881
45 Thomas Todd 6,854 May 4, 1807February 7, 1826
46 Peter Vivian Daniel 6,716 January 10, 1842May 31, 1860
47 Tom C. Clark 6,501 August 24, 1949June 12, 1967
48 Warren E. Burger* 6,304 June 23, 1969September 26, 1986
49 Charles Evans Hughes* 6,214+ October 10, 1910June 10, 1916
February 24, 1930June 30, 1941*
50 Pierce Butler 6,162 January 2, 1923November 16, 1939
51 John Marshall Harlan II 6,023 March 28, 1955September 23, 1971
52 David Souter 6,017 October 9, 1990–present
53 Henry Brockholst Livingston 5,901 January 20, 1807March 18, 1823
54 Earl Warren* 5,740 October 5, 1953June 23, 1969
55 Lewis Franklin Powell, Jr. 5,649 January 7, 1972June 26, 1987
56 Clarence Thomas 5,638 October 23, 1991–present
57 Henry Billings Brown 5,621 January 5, 1891May 28, 1906
58 Samuel Chase 5,613 February 4, 1796June 19, 1811
59 George Sutherland 5,586 October 2, 1922January 17, 1938
60 Owen Josephus Roberts 5,538 June 2, 1930July 31, 1945
61 John McKinley 5,305 January 9, 1838July 19, 1852
62 Henry Baldwin 5,207 January 18, 1830April 21, 1844
63 David Davis 5,198 December 10, 1862March 4, 1877
64 Morrison R. Waite* 5,133 March 4, 1874March 23, 1888
65 Rufus Wheeler Peckham 5,039 January 6, 1896October 24, 1909
66 Ruth Bader Ginsburg 4,981 August 10, 1993–present
67 William Paterson 4,929 March 11, 1793September 9, 1806
68 Robert H. Jackson 4,838 July 11, 1941October 9, 1954
69 Harold Hitz Burton 4,760 October 1, 1945October 13, 1958
70 Stephen Breyer 4,623 August 3, 1994–present
71 Samuel Blatchford 4,113 April 3, 1882July 7, 1893
72 Mahlon Pitney 3,940 March 18, 1912December 31, 1922
73 William Strong 3,928 March 14, 1870December 14, 1880
74 George Shiras, Jr. 3,787 October 10, 1892February 23, 1903
75 Frank Murphy 3,452 February 5, 1940July 19, 1949
76 James Iredell 3,448 May 12, 1790October 20, 1799
77 Ward Hunt 3,305 January 9, 1873January 27, 1882
78 James Wilson 3,242 October 5, 1789August 21, 1798
79 William Howard Taft* 3,129 July 11, 1921February 3, 1930
80 Salmon P. Chase* 3,065 December 15, 1864May 7, 1873
81 John Archibald Campbell 2,941 April 11, 1853April 30, 1861
82 Thomas Stanley Matthews 2,866 May 17, 1881March 22, 1889
83 Fred M. Vinson* 2,633 June 24, 1946September 8, 1953
84 Edward Terry Sanford 2,574 February 19, 1923March 8, 1930
85 Sherman Minton 2,560 October 12, 1949October 15, 1956
86 Wiley Blount Rutledge 2,399 February 15, 1943September 10, 1949
87 William Burnham Woods 2,320 January 5, 1881May 14, 1887
88 Benjamin N. Cardozo 2,308 March 14, 1932July 9, 1938
89 Benjamin Robbins Curtis 2,182 October 10, 1851September 30, 1857
90 Levi Woodbury 2,172 September 23, 1845September 4, 1851
91 John Hessin Clarke 2,170 October 9, 1916September 18, 1922
92 John Blair 2,091 February 2, 1790October 25, 1795
93 John Jay* 2,079 October 19, 1789June 29, 1795
94 Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar 1,832 January 18, 1888January 23, 1893
95 Charles Evans Whittaker 1,832 March 25, 1957March 31, 1962
96 Joseph Rucker Lamar 1,825 January 3, 1911January 2, 1916
97 Philip Pendleton Barbour 1,750 May 12, 1836February 25, 1841
98 Oliver Ellsworth* 1,742 March 8, 1796December 15, 1800
99 Horace Harmon Lurton 1,651 January 3, 1910July 12, 1914
100 William Henry Moody 1,434 December 17, 1906November 20, 1910
101 Alfred Moore 1,375 April 21, 1800January 26, 1804
102 Abe Fortas 1,318 October 4, 1965May 14, 1969
103 Arthur Joseph Goldberg 1,028 October 1, 1962July 25, 1965
104 Howell Edmunds Jackson 887 March 4, 1893August 8, 1895
105 Robert Trimble 801 June 16, 1826August 25, 1828
106 John Roberts* 548 September 29, 2005–present
107 John Rutledge* 508+ February 15, 1790March 5, 1791
August 12, 1795December 15, 1795*
108 James F. Byrnes 452 July 8, 1941October 3, 1942
109 Samuel Alito 424 January 31, 2006–present
110 Thomas Johnson 163 August 6, 1792January 16, 1793

*Chief Justice
+Term as Associate Justice and Chief Justice combined


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