John G. Roberts, Jr. has now served more than five years as the seventeenth Chief Justice of the United States. He has held that position longer than Harlan Fiske Stone did and for nearly twice as many days as John F. Kennedy was President.
Although Chief Justice Roberts’ judicial opinions, and those of the Court, offer jurisprudence to analyze, it is too early to reach definitive judgments regarding his influence as Chief Justice or his success in that position. Roberts holds an office that, unique among high governmental positions, resists confident real-time assessment.