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Federal Dockets, Briefs, Filings, & More

Overview

The official website of the Supreme Court of the United States includes opinions, dockets, recent briefs, oral arguments, court rules, and more.

Oyez, a free law project from Cornell’s Legal Information Institute (LII), includes audio, searchable transcripts, opinions, and more (*does not include court filings).

Lexis, Westlaw, and Bloomberg Law, all available in the library, include select dockets and documents from the Supreme Court. See below for more details.

Jenkins has Supreme Court records & briefs on microfiche as well as in the print set Landmark Briefs and Arguments of the Supreme Court of the United States. For more information about our print and micro collection, contact Research Services at 215.574.1505 or research@jenkinslaw.org.

For older Supreme Court documents, you may need to contact National Archives. The U.S. Supreme Court Collection encompasses 1772-1997.

Official Court Website

Supreme Court of the United States Official Site
Includes Docket Searching (dockets contain information about cases, both pending and decided, that have been filed at the Court since the beginning of the 2001 Term), Briefs (November 2017 - present, available through the docket), Oral Arguments Transcripts (October Term 1969 - present), Oral Arguments Audio Files (October Term 2010 - present), Supreme Court Bar Admission forms and information, Rules of the Supreme Court, Guides for Counsel, Opinions (1991 Term - present, see Bound Volumes for 1991-2015), Orders of the Court, and Journal of the Supreme Court of the United States (1889 - present).

Finding US Supreme Court Documents

Oyez Cornell’s Legal Information Institute (LII), Chicago-Kent College of Law and Justia.com
1793-present. Oyez (pronounced OH-yay)— is the most complete and authoritative source for all of the Court's audio beginning in October 1955. Offers transcript-synchronized and searchable audio, plain-English case summaries, decision information, full-text Supreme Court opinions, and detailed information on every justice throughout the Court's history.

Dockets United States Supreme Court
Available on the library's Lexis computers.

U.S. Supreme Court Briefs
Available on the library's Lexis computers.
1936 - current. For more information about coverage, see the Scope Notes.

United States Supreme Court Transcripts
Available on the library's Lexis computers.
October 1, 1979 - present. Updates within two weeks of publication.

United States Supreme Court Briefs, Pleadings and Motions
Available on the library's Lexis computers.

 

U.S. Supreme Court Briefs, Petitions & Joint Appendices
Available on the library's Westlaw computers.
Selected coverage only: Briefs - selected coverage begins with 1930; Petitions - selected coverage begins with 1985; Joint Appendices - selected coverage begins with 1982.

U.S. Supreme Court Dockets
Available on the library's Westlaw computers.
Coverage begins with January 2000.

Dockets Search, U.S. Supreme Court
Available on the library's Bloomberg Law computers. .
Coverage begins with 2003.

Note: Documents such as briefs or petitions may be available from a docket. 

United States Supreme Court Records and Briefs
Library has vol. 1 (1832) - vol. 267 (1992) and 92-2051 (1992) - 05-8794 (2005).
See also the alternate title Index to the Records and Briefs of the United States Supreme Court (1832-1915, includes select cases not included in the U.S. Reports). Reference Staff has separate CIS U.S. Supreme Court Records & Briefs: Finding Aid and Shelf List (1916/17 Term - 1973/74 Term)

Landmark Briefs and Arguments of the Supreme Court of the United States, Constitutional Law University Publications
Library has vol. 1 (1783-1824) - vol. 303 (2001). Select cases only.

Journal of Supreme Court History
The yearbook of the Supreme Court Historical Society. Library has 1990 - vol. 38 (2013).

Records of the Supreme Court of the United States National Archives
1772-1997. Include dockets, briefs, and select oral arguments. Some restrictions apply. Contact the National Archives with any questions.