The judicial branch is a history of the supreme court of the united states organized by chief justice the supreme court of the united states is the only court specifically established by the constitution of the united states implemented in 1789 under the judiciary act of 1789 the court was to be composed of five members though the number of justices has been nine for most of its history this number is set by congress not the constitution the court convened for the first time on . Established by the united states constitution the supreme court began to take shape with the passage of the judiciary act of 1789 and has enjoyed a rich history since its first assembly in 1790 the supreme court is deeply tied to its traditions of the federal governments three branches the court bears the closest resemblance to its . History of the supreme court of the united states the judiciary act of 1789 implemented the entire fed world heritage encyclopedia the aggregation of the largest online encyclopedias available and the most definitive collection ever assembled. The oliver wendell holmes devise history of the supreme court of the united states general editor stanley n katz volume i antecedents and beginnings to 1801 by julius goebel jr volume ii foundations of power john marshall 1801 1815 by george l haskins and herbert a johnson