Supreme Court returns from summer recess to sort through petitions for upcoming calendar

The Supreme Court returned behind closed doors on Monday to review thousands of petitions that were filed during their months-long summer recess and to finalize their upcoming calendar.

The high court's term typically runs from October through June, and the court has been on recess since June 27, except for a few items on its emergency docket. 

The Supreme Court is reviewing the cases as part of its "long conference." The court typically receives between 5,000 and 7,000 petitions each term, but only agrees to hear approximately 60-80 of those cases, according to the Washington Examiner. 

During the conference, the Court will weigh approximately 2,000 petitions. The cases are partly decided by a clerk, who reviews cases and determines whether to recommend them to the Supreme Court for further debate. The justices also weigh in on what cases they want to debate in the formal meeting, which get added to a list. The list is never published. 

The Supreme Court has already agreed to hear President Donald Trump's tariffs case this fall, which would determine whether Trump can use emergency powers to place tariffs on many countries. The court scheduled oral hearings in the case to take place in the first week of November. 

The high court formally resumes its calendar on Oct. 5.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.