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The Highest Court of the Land in Washington, D.C.

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The US Supreme Court has always been known as the “Highest Court of the Land”, but there's one more court that sits even above the Supreme Court, literally - a basketball court.

Aptly named “The Highest Court in the Land”, the U.S Supreme Court's basketball court sits on the fifth floor of the United States Supreme Court Building, which is much higher than the actual courtroom, located on the second floor.

The court was once a spare room to house journals, but sometime in the 1940s, it was converted into a workout area for courthouse workers. Wooden backboards and baskets were installed later, which led to the court's current use as a basketball court used by clerks, off-duty police officers, and other supreme court employees.

A few notable names that have played in the smaller-than-regulation-sized court aren't NBA stars, but Supreme Court Justices, such as Byron White and Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist. Sandra Day O'Connor also used the gym, but for women-only yoga classes, not b-ball. While the current Supreme Court Justices aren't all spry enough for basketball, many of them do use the weight room, also on the fifth floor.

A sign at the court's entrance tells would-be players to make sure that they aren't playing during a court day, and not to assume court is not in session. A court justice will send a clerk upstairs to tell players during court days to keep it down. No one wants to be on the record for disrupting court functions.

Unfortunately, the Highest Court is not open to the public. However, if you listen close enough while in the courtroom, you just might hear the squeaking of shoes and the dribble of a basketball.


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