In Focus delivers deeper coverage of the political, cultural, and ideological issues shaping America. Published daily by senior writers and experts, these in-depth pieces go beyond the headlines to give readers the full picture. You can find our full list of In Focus pieces here.The Supreme Court‘s recently concluded term was dominated by cases involving President Donald Trump, but different justices dominated different parts of the term, from Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson‘s long questioning at arguments to Chief Justice John Roberts‘s near-perfect record of being in the majority.The Supreme Court’s term began with oral arguments in Villarreal v. Texas on Oct. 6, 2025, through the final opinion release day on June 30, with the 6-3 ruling in Trump v. Barbara, in which the high court struck down Trump’s birthright citizenship executive order. The Supreme Court’s oral arguments and rulings offered key insights on how the justices operate, beyond the rulings themselves.
Vocal Jackson and reserved Thomas on opposite ends of oral arguments
During oral arguments for the 58 cases the Supreme Court ruled on this term, the justices said a total of 342,840 words, according to a Washington Examiner analysis of Supreme Court transcripts. The most vocal member of the Supreme Court bench was Jackson, making up 21.96% of the words said by justices during all oral arguments, while the least vocal was Justice Clarence Thomas, whose questioning only made up 2.96% of the words said by justices during arguments.
