A Tale Of Two Shadow Dockets

A Tale Of Two Shadow Dockets

In the span of seventy-two hours, the Supreme Court decided two cases on the emergency docket. First, by a 7-2 vote, in A.A.R.P. v. Trump, the Court

Litigating in the Shadows

United States Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C. (Photo credit: Adobe Stock/steheap) It’s called the shadow docket. It refers to decisions of the United States Supreme Court on “emergency applications,” in cases that do not have a developed record, do not have full briefing by the parties and do not have an oral argument. The court simply rules on the emergency papers submitted. The rulings — which can come from a single justice or the S…