Slip Opinion

Slip Opinion Initial publication of Supreme Court opinions occurs in two stages: bench opinions released by the Court on the day of the decision and slip opinions sent to the printer on the same day. Since 1990 official copies have been available from the Court's Web site at http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/opinions.html within hours after the bench opinions are issued. Several months elapse before the official paginated hard copy preliminary print is produced, followed a year later by publication of the U.S. Reports bound volume.

The Court in 1970 authorized inclusion of headnotes in slip opinions as an aid to the press. Thus composed, such opinions contain a headnote or syllabus that includes the title, originating court, docket number dates of arguments and decision, summary of the facts, holdings, reasoning and judgment of the Court, and the justices' voting line‐up. Following is the text of the majority or plurality opinion and that of each separate concurring or dissenting opinion. All headnotes are prefaced by a disclaimer of authority derived from United States v. Detroit Lumber Co. (1905). Following the headnote is an invitation to notify the court reporter (see Reporters, Supreme Court), who is responsible for proofreading and headnote‐drafting, of errors to be corrected prior to publication of the preliminary print. Any discrepancies between the print and electronic versions are controlled by the latest print version.

Modern slip opinions evolved from page proofs once obtainable only from the Court‐selected private printer or from a justice. Their circulation became routinized, initially for the benefit of journalists, during William Howard Taft's chief justiceship. Technological innovation expedited production of slip opinions during Chief Justice Warren Burger's tenure. But security against premature disclosures of opinions continued to be of concern after a 1979 “leak” of the Court's ruling in Herbert v. Lando.

See also Advance Sheets; Opinions, Assignment and Writing of.

Peter G. Fish