<P> A quorum of justices to hear and decide a case is six . If , through recusals or vacancies , fewer than six justices can participate in a case , and a majority of qualified justices determines that the case can not be heard in the next term , then the decision of the court below is affirmed as if the Court had been equally divided on the case . An exception exists when this situation arises in one of the now - rare cases brought directly to the Supreme Court on appeal from a United States District Court ; in this situation , the case is referred to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the corresponding circuit for a final decision there by either the Court of Appeals sitting en banc , or a panel consisting of the three most senior active circuit judges . </P>
<P> A quorum of justices to hear and decide a case is six . If , through recusals or vacancies , fewer than six justices can participate in a case , and a majority of qualified justices determines that the case can not be heard in the next term , then the decision of the court below is affirmed as if the Court had been equally divided on the case . An exception exists when this situation arises in one of the now - rare cases brought directly to the Supreme Court on appeal from a United States District Court ; in this situation , the case is referred to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the corresponding circuit for a final decision there by either the Court of Appeals sitting en banc , or a panel consisting of the three most senior active circuit judges . </P>
a quorum for a decision in the supreme court is
a quorum for a decision in the supreme court is
six
six