court opinions
Judges' written reasoning
Court opinions are the written explanations judges issue when deciding cases, setting out the legal reasoning behind their rulings.
They establish precedent that guides future decisions: The Supreme Court opinion in Brown v. Board transformed American education.
Opinions may be unanimous, majority, concurring, or dissenting, each carrying different legal weight.
- precedentPrior authoritative example
- oral argumentSpoken case presentation
- legal briefWritten court argument
- case lawJudge-made legal doctrine
- headnotesPrefatory case summaries
judicial panel · judicial review · holding · judge · robes · concurrence · legal reasoning · gavel · verdict · citation · chambers · constitutional · bench · binding · reasoning · statute · legal · dissent
- court recordscase files, case file, sworn testimony, filing date, trial transcript
- court rulingsrulings, divorce decree, judgments, annulment, verdicts
- legal documentscontract, affidavit, deed, will, subpoena
- legal recordsjudicial records, rulings, judgments, opinions, case files
- legal resourceslaw library, legal forms, law reviews, legal clinic, pro bono
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source of law
court opinionslegislation
Official enactment of statutes
statutes · executive orders · constitutional amendments · ordinances · treaties