1、CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Legal SidebarLegal Sidebari i Justice Breyer Retires: Initial Considerations January 28, 2022 On January 27, 2022, Justice Stephen G. Breyer announced that he would retire from active service as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Cou
2、rt at the end of the Courts current Term, “assuming that by then his successor has been nominated and confirmed.” This Legal Sidebar provides an overview of key legal issues that Congress (and particularly the Senate, through its advice-and-consent role) may consider as it reflects on Justice Breyer
3、s tenure on the Court and how his successor might shape the Courts future jurisprudence. The discussion below summarizes Justice Breyers approach to judging generally before highlighting several areas where Justice Breyer staked out significant legal positions, both through majority opinions and dis
4、sents that he authored and through his votes. As the decisions cited below illustrate, Justice Breyers pragmatic approach has generally led him to prefer standards, which would allow judges to consider all the relevant circumstances, over strict rules. He has frequently taken fact-specific approache
