Court opinions
How to cite a U.S. Supreme Court opinion
Cite a U.S. Supreme Court opinion as case name, volume, “U.S.”, first page, a pinpoint page if you rely on one passage, and the year of decision in parentheses.
The parenthetical holds the year alone, because “U.S.” already tells the reader which court decided the case.
When an opinion is too new for a page in the United States Reports, the book prints the volume with a blank page (“___”) rather than guessing one.
12 real examples
Each citation is printed as the book prints it, from an authority the book checked against its source.
Zicherman v. Korean Air Lines Co., 516 U.S. 217 (1996).
- Case name
- Zicherman v. Korean Air Lines Co.
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 516 U.S. 217
- Year
- (1996)
The authority
- Zicherman v. Korean Air Lines Co. (U.S., Jan. 16, 1996)Source (tile.loc.gov)
Where the book teaches this
Loper Bright Enters. v. Raimondo, 603 U.S. 369 (2024).
- Case name
- Loper Bright Enters. v. Raimondo
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 603 U.S. 369
- Year
- (2024)
The authority
- Loper Bright Enters. v. Raimondo (U.S., June 28, 2024)Source (supremecourt.gov)
Yates v. United States, 574 U.S. 528, 536 (2015) (plurality opinion).
- Case name
- Yates v. United States
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 574 U.S. 528
- Pinpoint
- 536
- Year
- (2015)
The authority
- Yates v. United States (U.S., Feb. 25, 2015)Source (govinfo.gov)
West Virginia v. B.P.J., 609 U.S. ___ (2026).
- Case name
- West Virginia v. B.P.J.
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 609 U.S. ___
- Year
- (2026)
The authority
- West Virginia v. B.P.J. (U.S., June 30, 2026)Source (supremecourt.gov)
Where the book teaches this
See generally Train v. Nat. Res. Def. Council, Inc., 421 U.S. 60, 63–64 (1975).
- Case name
- Train v. Nat. Res. Def. Council, Inc.
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 421 U.S. 60
- Pinpoint
- 63–64
- Year
- (1975)
The authority
- Train v. Nat. Res. Def. Council, Inc. (U.S., Apr. 16, 1975)Source (govinfo.gov)
Where the book teaches this
Accord Halo Elecs., Inc. v. Pulse Elecs., Inc., 579 U.S. 93, 105 (2016).
- Case name
- Halo Elecs., Inc. v. Pulse Elecs., Inc.
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 579 U.S. 93
- Pinpoint
- 105
- Year
- (2016)
The authority
- Halo Elecs., Inc. v. Pulse Elecs., Inc. (U.S., June 13, 2016)Source (govinfo.gov)
Where the book teaches this
See Perez v. Mortg. Bankers Ass’n, 575 U.S. 92, 109–10 (2015) (Scalia, J., concurring in the judgment).
- Case name
- Perez v. Mortg. Bankers Ass’n
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 575 U.S. 92
- Pinpoint
- 109–10
- Year
- (2015)
The authority
- Perez v. Mortg. Bankers Ass’n (U.S., Mar. 9, 2015)Source (govinfo.gov)
Where the book teaches this
Dep’t of Educ. v. California, 604 U.S. 650, 651–52 (2025) (per curiam).
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 604 U.S. 650
- Pinpoint
- 651–52
- Year
- (2025)
The authority
- Dep't of Educ. v. California (U.S., Apr. 4, 2025)Source (supremecourt.gov)
Where the book teaches this
Medo Photo Supply Corp. v. NLRB, 321 U.S. 678, 681–82 n.1 (1944).
- Case name
- Medo Photo Supply Corp. v. NLRB
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 321 U.S. 678
- Pinpoint
- 681–82 n.1
- Year
- (1944)
The authority
- Medo Photo Supply Corp. v. NLRB (U.S., Apr. 10, 1944)Source (govinfo.gov)
Where the book teaches this
Brownback v. King, 592 U.S. 209, 215 (2021).
- Case name
- Brownback v. King
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 592 U.S. 209
- Pinpoint
- 215
- Year
- (2021)
The authority
- Brownback v. King (U.S., Feb. 25, 2021)Source (supremecourt.gov)
Where the book teaches this
Trump v. CASA, Inc., 606 U.S. 831, 865 (2025) (Thomas, J., concurring).
- Case name
- Trump v. CASA, Inc.
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 606 U.S. 831
- Pinpoint
- 865
- Year
- (2025)
The authority
- Trump v. CASA, Inc. (U.S., June 27, 2025)Source (supremecourt.gov)
Where the book teaches this
United States ex rel. Schutte v. SuperValu Inc., 598 U.S. 739 (2023).
- Case name
- United States ex rel. Schutte v. SuperValu Inc.
- Volume, reporter and first page
- 598 U.S. 739
- Year
- (2023)
The authority
- United States ex rel. Schutte v. SuperValu Inc. (U.S., June 1, 2023)Source (supremecourt.gov)
Where the book teaches this
Where the book teaches this
The full rule, its exceptions and the reasons for it are in these sections.
- 1.4 Identity: is it the authority you think it is?
- 1.6 Support: does the passage say what you say it says?
- 1.11 The final document audit
- 1.12 Errors the four checks catch
- 2.4 Signals: what each one tells your reader
- 2.11 Errors to catch
- 4.3 Notes, tables and figures
- 4.8 One passage, several page numbers: slip opinions, reporters and star pages