New StatPack, Two New Sections

In our continuing quest to provide you with as much information about the Court as possible, we’ve added two new sections to our “StatPack” this week. In fact, as we keep adding features, the download is getting more difficult to navigate. Thus, you can download the full pack by clicking here, or you can download each section separately at the end of this post.

The first new feature comes by reader suggestion: you’ll now find decisions this Term broken down by vote, so that you can see the number of 5-4 or unanimous cases at a glance (you can download just this section here). For next week’s StatPack, we’ll be making this feature even more comprehensive by adding this data from previous Terms for comparison’s sake.

Second, we now have a new page featuring the tally for the Court’s workload this Term. As noted here, things may change subtly between now and the Summer Recess, but it’s expected that the Court will issue 66 merits decisions after argument this Term. The Court is also on pace for 70 total merits decisions when summary reversals are included (note that argued cases that were dismissed are not included in these totals).

Both of those numbers are new modern lows for the Court, as 66 decisions after argument would be some 7% lower than last Term’s modern low of 71 cases. Such a drop has not been unexpected at all for Court-watchers, as the Court’s expanded workload in April did not entirely make up for its previously noted shortfall in cases argued during the December, February, and March sittings. Moreover, the slight dip continues the overall trend in the Court’s workload, as the Court has not decided more than 80 cases after argument since OT97, and has not decided more than 100 cases after argument since OT92 (for data going back to OT90, see this memo). Unless something remarkable happens in the next few weeks, however, the Court’s number of merits decisions after argument will dip below 70 for the first time in its modern history.

The individual section downloads can be found after the jump.

To download the entire pack, click here. The following individual sections are also available:

Cover and Calendar
Opinion Authors by Sitting
State of the Docket for OT07
Decisions by Final Vote
The Court’s Workload
Outstanding Cases for OT06
Cases Granted for OT07

As always, additional suggestions are welcome. Email me here or leave a comment.