The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has a process in place for correcting errors in its opinions, which can include minor typographical mistakes and more substantive changes. Here are some key points about this revision process:
The Revision Process
- Identification: Readers, including law clerks and legal scholars, identify errors in slip opinions.
- Reporting: These errors are reported to the Reporter of Decisions' office.
- Review: The Reporter's office reviews suggested changes and sends them to the authoring justice for approval or rejection.
- Court Approval: Since 1994, substantive changes require approval by the full court.
- Publication: Approved corrections are added as the opinion moves from slip form to preliminary print and finally to the bound U.S. Reports.
Notable Corrections in Recent Cases
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Trump v. Barbara (2026):
- Justice Thomas' dissent had a misattributed quote initially attributed to "Senator Reverdy Williams," which was corrected to "Senator George Williams."
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Cox Communications, Inc. v. Sony Music Entertainment:
- Minor grammatical fix: Changed "have plaintiffs show any way" to "have
Read the full article at SCOTUSblog
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Ali NematiWritten by Ali
