Justice Stevens Says He Plans to Continue Working as Long as He Enjoys It

Speculation has been rampant about the possibility Justice John Paul Stevens will retire at the end of the Supreme Court term that begins on Monday.

And what does Stevens have to say about the matter? He told C-Span he intends to continue working as long as he enjoys work at the court, the Associated Press reports. The article points out that Stevens works at the court—and at his Florida home in Fort Lauderdale, where he sometimes reads briefs sitting on the beach.

At 89, Stevens is the second-oldest justice in the court’s history. He would need to serve until Feb. 24, 2011, to surpass Oliver Wendell Holmes as the oldest justice in history. If he stayed on the bench close to three more years, he would have the record for the longest-serving justice, AP says.

Stevens told C-Span the milestones don’t mean anything to him, according to the AP account. "No, I'm not out to break any records, I can assure you of that," he said. "I just enjoy the work, and each year I’ve thought about it I’ve decided that I could continue to enjoy it and continue to make a contribution."

Hat tip to How Appealing.

Updated Oct. 3 to fix typo. Updated on Oct. 5. to include an additional quote from the Stevens interview.