WASHINGTON – Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh has tested positive for COVID-19 just days before the justices were set to return to the courtroom to begin a new term, the court announced Friday.
Kavanaugh, who along with the other Supreme Court justices has been vaccinated since January, is not experiencing symptoms, the court said. He was informed of the positive test result Thursday ahead of a ceremonial swearing-in ceremony for Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett set for Friday.
All nine justices were tested Monday morning prior to their conference where they meet to discuss cases and all tested negative, including Kavanaugh, the court said. Court officials said Kavanaugh, 56, would not attend Barrett’s investiture ceremony.
A Supreme Court spokeswoman did not immediately respond to questions about what the positive test result would mean for oral arguments, which are set to begin Monday. It was not immediately clear if Kavanaugh has had a follow-up test.
The Supreme Court announced in September that it would conduct oral arguments in person starting Monday after more than a year in which COVID-19 forced them to debate their docket virtually. The return to the courtroom will be limited to the justices, attorneys and journalists as the court’s building remains closed to the public.
The high court switched to a virtual argument format last spring for the first time in its history as the coronavirus pandemic began closing down in-person meetings at businesses, schools and other government buildings.
The court is often tight-lipped about the health of the justices and officials have long declined to discuss how often they are tested. Barrett tested positive for COVID-19 last year before she was confirmed, The Washington Post reported at the time.
The justices are scheduled to return to the courtroom to hear two cases Monday, one that deals with whether a man who robbed 10 separate units of a Georgia storage facility in 1997 should be considered to have committed 10 different crimes for sentencing purposes, and a dispute between Tennessee and Mississippi over an interstate aquifer.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh tests positive for COVID-19
