Overview
- SCOTUSblog analysis found the six conservative justices voted together against the three liberals in roughly 22.7 percent of cases this term, a marked rise from about 10 percent historically.
- The Court’s docket was heavily shaped by President Trump and his administration, which sought emergency relief from the High Court more than two dozen times over the last year.
- Public conflicts between justices surfaced late in the term when Justice Sonia Sotomayor read a dissent from the bench in an asylum case and Justice Samuel Alito issued a rare bench statement in response.
- Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson directly rebuked Justice Clarence Thomas in an opinion upholding birthright citizenship, and SCOTUSblog data show wide variation in how often individual justices joined majority opinions.
- Polling and commentary show growing public disapproval of the Court and concern that recent rulings have expanded presidential power, raising questions about institutional legitimacy and the Court’s future role.