Although the October 2021 Term opened with aspirations of a return to pre-pandemic business as usual, all signs showed that a new normal was in store. That new normal is coming into focus, and it’s a Court that is ready to reshape the law. “A new normal at the Supreme Court,” Reuters Legal News, Oct. 18, 2021. This Term saw a precipitous decline in consensus, with the Court issuing a record-low proportion of unanimous decisions — 29% (18 cases). Over the prior decade, unanimous decisions had averaged 46%. That percentage dropped slightly last Term, to 43%, when Justices still managed to forge agreement on several hot-button issues. “Supreme Court marked by unexpected alignments and incrementalism,” Reuters Legal News, July 26, 2021.
Instead of the narrow consensus that characterized last Term, the 2021 Term saw a surge in 6-3 decisions. For the first time in at least a decade, a plurality of the Court’s decisions were sharply divided rather than unanimous. Thirty percent of the Court’s docket this Term — 19 decisions — were decided by a vote of 6-3, and 14 of them along ideological lines.
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For further information, please contact:
Shay Dvoretzky, Partner, Skadden
shay.dvoretzky@skadden.com
