Evans v. Stephens

Background

A group of challengers asked the courts to overturn the President’s appointment of Judge William H. Pryor Jr. to the Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. The appointment occurred during an 11‑day President’s Day break in February 2004. The en banc appeals court found the appointment consistent with the Constitution’s Recess Appointments Clause, and the Government urged the Supreme Court not to take the case for practical reasons.

Reasoning

The main question was whether the President may fill Article III judicial vacancies during short, in‑session breaks. The Supreme Court declined to review the case and expressly did not rule on that constitutional question. The Court and Justice Stevens noted prudential reasons for denial: this was an unusual, near‑first appointment of its kind in decades; the petition sought review of an interlocutory ruling; and the appeals court did not treat the appointment question as affecting its power to decide the case.

Real world impact

Because the Supreme Court refused to take the case, the appeals court’s decision that the appointment was valid remains effective for now. The wider constitutional issue about very short "recess" appointments is left unresolved and could be raised again later. This denial is not a final decision on the merits and could be revisited in a future, properly presented case.

Dissents or concurrances

Justice Stevens, while respecting the denial, stressed that denying review does not decide the constitutional question and warned against assuming the merits were against the challengers.