 Not only have all justices been attorneys , nearly two thirds had previously been judges . As of 2010 , eight of the nine sitting justices previously served as judges of the United States Courts of Appeals , while the most recent appointment , Justice Elena Kagan , served as Solicitor General , the attorney responsible for representing the federal government in cases before the Court . Few justices have a background as criminal defense lawyers , and Thurgood Marshall is reportedly the last justice to have had a client in a death penalty case . 
