<P> President Franklin D. Roosevelt attempted to expand the Court in 1937, seeking to appoint an additional justice for each incumbent justice who reached the age of 70 years and 6 months and refused retirement; under Roosevelt's proposal, such appointments would continue until the Court reached a maximum size of 15 justices . Ostensibly, the proposal was made to ease the burdens of the docket on the elderly justices, but Roosevelt's actual purpose was to pack the Court with justices who would support New Deal policies and legislation . This plan, usually called the "Court - packing Plan", failed in Congress and proved a political disaster for Roosevelt . The balance of the Court shifted with the retirement of Willis Van Devanter and the confirmation of Hugo Black in August 1937 . By the end of 1941, Roosevelt had appointed seven Supreme Court justices and elevated Harlan Fiske Stone to chief justice . </P> <P> It is constitutionally possible for a justice to be removed from office through Congressional impeachment by the House and conviction by the Senate, another possible situation creating a vacancy . Only one justice--Samuel Chase, late 1804 - early 1805--has ever been impeached; however, Chase was acquitted by the Senate, and thus not removed from office . Removal of a justice through an impeachment process has therefore never taken place . Less substantial efforts towards impeachment of a sitting justice, not reaching a House vote, have occurred more recently: William O. Douglas was twice the subject of hearings, first in 1953 and again in 1970 . No mechanism presently exists for removing a justice who is permanently incapacitated by illness or injury, both unable to resign and unable to resume service . </P> <P> Despite the unpredictability of vacancies, most presidents have successfully appointed at least one justice . The four exceptions are William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, Andrew Johnson, and Jimmy Carter . Harrison died a month after taking office, though his successor John Tyler made an appointment during that presidential term . Taylor likewise died early in his term, although his successor Millard Fillmore also made a Supreme Court nomination before the end of that term . Johnson was denied the opportunity to appoint a justice by the 1866 act which reduced the Court's size, mentioned above . Jimmy Carter is the only president who completed one full term in office without making a nomination to the Court during his presidency . </P>

Number of votes needed for supreme court confirmation