Unusual start to new term for court

3 justices take day off for Rosh Hashana, no arguments heard

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court opened an unusual term on Monday with a depleted bench, just five of its nine seats filled.

The court has been down a justice since the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February, and with political gridlock over how to replace him, the court’s future awaits the results of the Nov. 8 presidential election.

Monday was the first time in 25 years the court has been at less than full strength at the start of a term, which occurs on the first Monday in October as prescribed by federal law.

The court’s three Jewish justices — Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer and Elena Kagan — were absent on the court’s opening day, which coincided with the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashana. Because of the holiday, the court diverged from its usual practice of hearing cases then.

The opening session lasted only about five minutes and consisted largely of admitting new attorneys to the Supreme Court bar. Also Monday, the court rejected hundreds of appeals that accumulated over its long summer recess.

When arguments begin on Tuesday it will mark the start of a cautious calendar, one without blockbuster cases such as those of recent years dealing with health care, gay marriage and abortion rights.