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What makes the current Supreme Court lineup of justices so different from the previous versions of the Court? For starters, according to , the justices 鈥� for all their differences 鈥� are still very much alike.

According to University of Tennessee law professor Benjamin H. Barton, who crunched the data on current and past justices, while most versions of the Court included justices from varying backgrounds, geographic areas and vocations, the paths of the current justices were largely the same: East or West Coast upbringings, elite schools, professorial posts and federal judgeships.

鈥淩oberts Court justices have spent more pre-appointment time in legal academia, appellate judging, and living in Washington, D.C. than any previous Supreme Court,鈥� Barton wrote of the current Court, which he calls an 鈥渙utlier.鈥� 鈥淭hey also spent the most time in elite undergraduate and law school settings.鈥�

That means, despite the fact that the current Court has more racial and gender diversity than ever, in other ways it鈥檚 more homogenous than it鈥檚 ever been.

鈥淭he Roberts Court justices spent less time in the private practice of law, in trial judging, and as elected politicians than any previous court,鈥� Barton noted.