Cameron Miranda
In the United States, case law is the collection of reported cases that form the body of law within a given jurisdiction. While all Supreme Court cases are published, not all cases are published in a reporter, and court rules decide which cases can be published and used as legal precedent. Generally, attorneys may not cite or rely upon unpublished opinions, which are deemed to have insufficient precedential value. However, unpublished cases can sometimes be located on LexisNexis, Westlaw, West's Federal Appendix, or in topical loose-leaf services. The practice of not publishing all court decisions has sparked controversy and debate on fairness issues.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Court | Supreme Court, Federal Courts, Intermediate Appellate Court, Trial Court |
| Case Law Publication | Official reporters, unofficial reporters |
| Case Law Availability | Published cases are available in official reporters, unofficial reporters, or both |
| Binding Precedent | Published cases are binding precedent for lower courts in the same jurisdiction |
| Non-Publication Reasons | Insufficient precedential value, preventing the creation of a precedent, budgetary constraints |
| Non-Publication Concerns | Distortion of the law, unfair access, abdication of responsibility by judges |
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What You'll Learn
US Supreme Court cases are always published
In the United States, case law refers to the collection of reported cases that form the body of law within a given jurisdiction. Case law is based on judicial opinions by various courts, which may set future precedent. While the practice of not publishing all court decisions is mildly controversial in federal practice, US Supreme Court cases are always published.
The US Supreme Court is the highest court in the country, and its decisions are binding precedent in all courts. Lower courts will generally follow the decisions of higher courts in their jurisdiction. Therefore, the effect of a court's decision on other courts depends on both the level of the court and its jurisdiction. For example, a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit would not be binding on the US Supreme Court or courts from another circuit.
US Supreme Court cases are published in the United States Reports (U.S.), which is the official reporter. Cases may also be published in unofficial reporters such as the Supreme Court Reporter (S. Ct.), published by West, and the United States Supreme Court Reports, Lawyer's Edition (L. Ed., L. Ed. 2d), published by Lexis.
Cases are published in chronological order in books called reporters. A case citation allows a researcher to find a case quickly and easily. All case citations follow a structured format, enabling researchers to clearly identify the parts of a citation and locate the case. For example, in the case citation Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973), the number "410" refers to volume 410 of the United States Reports, "U.S." indicates the United States Reports, "113" is the page number, and "1973" is the year the case was decided.
In addition to print sources, US Supreme Court cases can be accessed online through resources such as the Oyez Project, a multimedia archive devoted to the Supreme Court of the United States and its work. The Oyez Project aims to be a complete and authoritative source for all audio recorded in the Court since 1955 and also provides information on all justices and a virtual tour of portions of the Supreme Court building.
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Federal courts' pages provide free case law
In the United States, case law refers to the collection of reported cases that form the body of law within a given jurisdiction. It is based on judicial opinions by various courts, which may set future precedent. The federal court system includes the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Courts of Appeals, U.S. District Courts, the U.S. Court of Claims, and other specialised courts.
Federal Courts pages do provide free case law. The "Federal Law" section on the website of the Georgia State University College of Law Library provides users with links to all Federal Courts' pages, which offer court decisions and case law, mostly from at least the mid-1990s. The Oyez Project is another multimedia archive dedicated to the Supreme Court of the United States, providing audio recordings and transcripts of oral arguments since October 1955.
Other sources of free case law include CourtListener, a non-profit free legal search engine and alert system, and Justia, which provides access to court opinions from all U.S. federal courts, including the Courts of Appeals, District Courts, Bankruptcy Courts, and other specialised courts.
However, it is important to note that not all court decisions are published, particularly at the intermediate appellate court level. This practice is mildly controversial. Attorneys generally may not cite, and courts may not rely upon, unpublished opinions.
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Intermediate appellate court cases are sometimes unpublished
In the United States, case law refers to the collection of reported cases that form the body of law within a given jurisdiction. It is based on judicial opinions by various courts, which may set future precedent. Generally, courts will follow the decisions of higher courts in their jurisdiction.
The U.S. Supreme Court is the highest court in the land, and its decisions are binding precedent in all courts. All Supreme Court cases are published. Below the Supreme Court are the U.S. Courts of Appeals, also known as the Circuit Courts. These are the intermediate federal appellate courts, and there are 12 regional circuit courts and one for the Federal Circuit.
Decisions by the Courts of Appeals are final in most cases and are binding on lower courts within the same circuit. However, they are not binding on the Supreme Court or courts from another circuit. Approximately 35% of Court of Appeals decisions are published, while the remaining cases are unpublished. Unpublished cases are not considered binding authority, but they can be used as persuasive authority in certain situations.
The criteria for publication of appellate opinions vary by circuit, and each circuit establishes its own rules. Cases selected for publication by the Courts of Appeals are published in the Federal Reporter, while unpublished cases are published in the Federal Appendix.
While the practice of not publishing all court decisions is mildly controversial, it is important to note that unpublished opinions are generally not cited or relied upon by attorneys and courts. This is because unpublished opinions do not create binding precedent and may not be cited as such.
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Unpublished opinions cannot be cited or relied upon
In the United States, case law refers to the collection of reported cases that form the body of law within a given jurisdiction. It is based on judicial opinions by various courts, which may set future precedent. While all Supreme Court cases are published, only a small percentage of cases are designated for publication by a court and published in a reporter. Many cases are unpublished but still available in databases such as Westlaw, Lexis, Bloomberg Law, or elsewhere.
In Michigan, the rule governing the citation of unpublished opinions in the Michigan Supreme Court and Court of Appeals is more restrictive. MCR 7.215(C) states that unpublished opinions should not be cited for propositions of law for which there is published authority. If a party does cite an unpublished opinion, they must explain the reason for doing so and provide a copy of the opinion to the court and opposing parties.
The criteria for publication of appellate opinions and the precedential value of unpublished decisions vary across jurisdictions. For example, Local Rule 36 of the United States Court of Appeal for the 10th Circuit is typical, while the Michigan Court of Appeals has specific criteria for when an opinion must be published.
It is important to check the specific rules of your jurisdiction to determine if and how an unpublished case can be cited in a brief. While unpublished cases are generally not binding authority, they can sometimes be used as persuasive authority.
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Selective publication is a controversial legal process
In the United States, case law is the collection of reported cases that form the body of law within a given jurisdiction. While all Supreme Court cases are published, some cases from other courts are not. This practice of selective publication is controversial.
Selective publication is the legal process by which a judge or justices of a court decide whether or not a decision is to be published in a reporter. Approximately 35% of Court of Appeals decisions and 20% of U.S. District Court decisions are published. Cases deemed to have insufficient precedential value are often left unpublished.
The Federal Supplement, for example, only publishes "those decisions which the judges themselves (or their clerks) regard as inherently significant and worthy". This has led many scholars to argue that the decisions published in the Federal Supplement represent the major policy decisions of the federal district courts.
The practice of not publishing all court decisions has been criticised as an abdication of responsibility, freeing judges from the responsibility of preparing publication-worthy opinions in every case. It has also been argued that non-publication can distort the law.
However, others argue that non-publication helps to stem the problem of too much written material creating too little new law. The number of federal appeals filed annually grew from 23,200 to 33,360 between 1980 and 1985, and 55,000 federal appeals were filed in 2000.
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Frequently asked questions
No. In the US, only cases from intermediate appellate courts and supreme courts are published. Most trial court decisions are not published.
Published opinions are a mandatory authority for the court and the lower courts in its jurisdiction. Unpublished opinions are not a binding authority, but they can be used as persuasive authority.
There are several reasons why a case may not be published. One reason could be that the court deems the case to have insufficient precedential value. Another reason could be that the court wants to reach a particular result but does not want to set a precedent.
In the US, trial courts and some intermediate appellate courts do not publish their opinions.
Unpublished cases can sometimes be found on LexisNexis, Westlaw, West’s Federal Appendix, or in topical loose-leaf services.
