How many justices serve on the U.S. Supreme Court?

Nine justices currently serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. This has been the case since 1869 when Congress set the number of justices to nine (one Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices) with the Judiciary Act of 1869. However, it's important to note that the Constitution does not fix the number of justices; Congress has the power to change this number, and it has been both lower and higher in the past.

The U.S. Supreme Court is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. The number of Supreme Court Justices is determined by Congress and not the Constitution, which means it can be changed by legislation. Over the course of history, the number of justices on the Supreme Court has changed several times. The court started with six justices in 1789, and as the country grew, so too did the court, eventually reaching a peak of ten justices during the Civil War. After some adjustments in the late 19th century, the number settled at nine justices. The duties of the justices are to interpret the Constitution and other laws, resolve disputes that involve states or federal law, and they also have the power of judicial review to decide on the constitutionality of acts by the executive and legislative branches of the government.