<P> It is possible that, through recusals or vacancies, the Court divides evenly on a case . If that occurs, then the decision of the court below is affirmed, but does not establish binding precedent . In effect, it results in a return to the status quo ante . For a case to be heard, there must be a quorum of at least six justices . If a quorum is not available to hear a case and a majority of qualified justices believes that the case cannot be heard and determined in the next term, then the judgment of the court below is affirmed as if the Court had been evenly divided . For cases brought to the Supreme Court by direct appeal from a United States District Court, the Chief Justice may order the case remanded to the appropriate U.S. Court of Appeals for a final decision there . This has only occurred once in U.S. history, in the case of United States v. Alcoa (1945). </P> <P> The Court's opinions are published in three stages . First, a slip opinion is made available on the Court's web site and through other outlets . Next, several opinions and lists of the court's orders are bound together in paperback form, called a preliminary print of United States Reports, the official series of books in which the final version of the Court's opinions appears . About a year after the preliminary prints are issued, a final bound volume of U.S. Reports is issued . The individual volumes of U.S. Reports are numbered so that users may cite this set of reports--or a competing version published by another commercial legal publisher but containing parallel citations--to allow those who read their pleadings and other briefs to find the cases quickly and easily . </P> <P> As of the beginning of October 2016 term, there are: </P> <Ul> <Li> 564 final bound volumes of U.S. Reports, covering cases through the end of October 2010 term, which ended on September 28, 2011 . </Li> <Li> 16 volumes' worth of opinions available in slip opinion form (volumes 565--580) </Li> </Ul>

The ages of all the supreme court justices