The Supreme Court began a new session Monday morning with new Justice Elena Kagan taking her place on the bench.  The new term brings the count of female justices aboard the nine-member highest court of the nation to three; Kagan joins fellow female Justices Ruth Bader Ginsberg and Sonia Sotomayor. 

The Court will be hearing a number of controversial cases over the course of this term.  Among them are a cases involving religiously-motivated, anti-homosexual protests at military funerals, a  ban on violent video game sales to children in the state of California, and an Arizona law penalizing businesses that employ illegal immigrants.

Due to Kagan's former appointment as President Obama's solicitor general, she has had to recuse herself from 24 of the 51 cases the Supreme Court is to hear this term so far.

For a useful round-up and analysis of the cases to be heard by the Court, check out Wall Street Journal's Law Blog.