Anatomy of a Supreme Court Case

Name of the case and identify the parties

for example, Smith v. Jones, 457 U.S. 341 (1995)

Why are they in court?

(what are their claims and defenses?)

What are the “facts of the case”

In other words, briefly describe what happened, for example, a suspect was searched without a warrant.

What was the lower court’s decision and rationale?

Note that most Supreme Court cases are brought under the Court’s Appellate Jurisdiction, that is, its Constitutional right to hear appeals from all federal courts and state supreme courts.

What legal or constitutional issue does the Supreme Court address?

For example (from Brown v. Board of Education), Is it constitutionally permissible, under the Fourteenth Amendment’s equal protection clause, for states to segregate public school students on the basis of race?

What was the holding/Ruling?

That’s the majority opinion (the first one at the beginning of the case).
What was the Court’s rationale and reasoning? Do you agree or disagree and why?

Was there a dissent?

In many cases, one or more judges dissent from the majority holding (this is called the dissenting or minority opinion).
What was the dissent’s argument and rationale?

What was the Court’s final order?

That is, does the lower court decision stand, or is it overturned?
What are the practical day-to-day implications of the decision?

Do you agree or disagree, and why?

Give a detailed answer, including why the dissent (if any) was right or wrong.

Anatomy of a Supreme Court Case