Whether a citizen and member of the Supreme Court bar, without a claimed personal injury, may invoke the Court's judicial power to challenge the validity of a Justice's appointment.
Holding
No. Lévitt's generalized interest as a citizen and member of the bar was insufficient, so the Court denied leave to file the petition.
Reasoning
The Court treated the threshold question as one of entitlement to invoke the federal judicial power. A private person must show that the challenged executive or legislative action has caused, or immediately threatens to cause, a direct injury to that person.
Lévitt identified no injury peculiar to himself. His asserted interest in the constitutional validity of Justice Black's appointment was shared generally by the public and was therefore not enough to support judicial review.
Because Lévitt lacked the required direct personal stake, the Court did not reach his claims that the Ineligibility Clause barred the appointment or that no vacancy existed. The motion was denied on that threshold ground.