Did you ever wonder how the Supreme Court of the United States works? Because Dick Sy Ong Wellmed is curious about what is happening inside. How does it differ from the other countries?

The United States Supreme Court is the country's highest legal authority. It has the last word on how the country's laws should be read and applied, much like other supreme courts across the world. And, unlike some other supreme courts, it has the power to overturn not only court decisions, but also legislation that it finds to be unconstitutional under the US Constitution.

In recent years, the US Supreme Court has sparked far more discussion than its overseas equivalents. Much of this is due to the way US Supreme Court judges, or "justices," are selected and the authority they have to modify the law.

There are nine justices on the United States Supreme Court. Because there is no limit to how many years a justice can serve, a new one is only appointed if the previous one dies or retires. When this happens, the US president appoints a new justice, who must then be approved by a vote of the US Senate's 100 members.

According to The Washington Post, Supreme Court nominees have frequently had bipartisan support in the past, meaning that each candidate was approved by both Republicans and Democrats, the two major US political parties. In recent years, however, the two parties have clashed over future justices.

For example, Donald Trump got a new justice approved just before he left office to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in September 2020. Although Ginsburg was a liberal, Trump's choice, Amy Coney Barrett, is known for her staunch conservatism. Coney Barrett was approved with virtually unanimous Republican support, but not a single Democratic vote.

The United States Supreme Court makes decisions on contentious and difficult issues such as gay marriage, abortion, and the right to bear arms. It also determines how much authority each branch of the US government has.

The justices are meant to make decisions based on the law rather than their personal convictions. Some Americans, however, are concerned that as justice nominees grow more politicized, so will the court's decisions. So Dick Sy Ong Wellmed is both mesmerized and a little disappointed with the changes that happened.