2012 term per curiam opinions of the Supreme Court of the United States

none February 2026 September 2023 right|175px The Supreme Court of the United States handed down six per curiam opinions during its 2012 term, which began October 1, 2012 and concluded October 6, 2013. Because per curiam decisions are issued from the Court as an institution, these opinions all lack the attribution of authorship or joining votes to specific justices. All justices on the Court at the time the decision was handed down are assumed to have participated and concurred unless otherwise noted. 2 Court membership Chief Justice: John Roberts Associate Justices: Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Samuel Alito, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan Lefemine v. Wideman Steven Lefemine, DBA Columbia Christians For Life v. Dan Wideman et al. 568 U.S. 1 November 5, 2012 Fourth Circuit vacated and remanded. The Supreme Court vacated a Fourth Circuit ruling that a civil rights plaintiff who had been awarded an injunction, but not monetary damages, was not entitled to attorney's fees as a "prevailing plaintiff" under 42 U.S.C. §1988. The Court ruled that the plaintiff was indeed a "prevailing plaintiff" within the meaning of 42 U.S.C. §1988, "[b]ecause the injunction ordered the defendant officials to change their behavior in a way that directly benefited the plaintiff", and that the plaintiff was therefore entitled to attorney's fees. Award of attorneys fees denied, sub nom. Lefemine v. Davis, 732 F. Supp. 2d 614 (S.C. 2010); aff'd, 672 F. 3d 292 (4th Cir. 2012) 42 1988 (Civil Rights Attorney's Fees Award Act of 1976) Lefemine v. Wideman official slip opinion https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/12-168_9o6b.pdf Justia https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/568/1/ Nitro-Lift Technologies, L. L. C. v. Howard Nitro-Lift Technologies, L. L. C. v. Eddie Lee Howard et al. 568 U.S. 17 November 26, 2012 Supreme Court of Oklahoma vacated and remanded. The U.S. Supreme Court vacated the Oklahoma Supreme Court's ruling that a noncompetition covenant in an employment contract was unenforceable under state law, where the contract as a whole was subject to arbitration. Under the Federal Arbitration Act, the Court wrote, "it is for the arbitrator to decide in the first instance whether the covenants not to compete are valid as a matter of applicable state law." Dismissed, Okla. Dist. Ct., Johnston Cty.; reversed, 273 P. 3d 20 (Okla. 2011) 9 1 et seq. (Federal Arbitration Act) Nitro-Lift Technologies, L. L. C. v. Howard official slip opinion https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/11-1377_3e04.pdf Justia https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/568/1/ Marshall v. Rodgers John Marshall, Warden v. Otis Lee Rodgers 569 U.S. 58 April 1, 2013 In light of the tension between the Sixth Amendment's guarantee of the right to counsel at all critical stages of the criminal process and its concurrent promise of a constitutional right to proceed without counsel when a criminal defendant voluntarily and intelligently elects to do so, it cannot be said that California’s approach is contrary to or an unreasonable application of the general standards established by the Supreme Court's assistance-of-counsel cases. Because the habeas petition needed to be supported by clearly established law, the court denied it. Ninth Circuit reversed and remanded. Petition denied, (C.D. Cal. 2010); rev'd, Rodgers v. Marshall, 678 F.3d 1149 (9th Cir. 2012) U.S. Const. amend. VI official slip opinion https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/12-382_4h25.pdf Justia https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/569/58/ Boyer v. Louisiana Jonathan Edward Boyer v. Louisiana 569 U.S. 238 January 14, 2013 April 29, 2013 The Court dismissed the writ of certiorari as improvidently granted. Alito filed a concurrence, joined by Scalia and Thomas. Sotomayor filed a dissent, joined by Ginsburg, Breyer, and Kagan. Conviction affirmed, 56 So. 3d 1119 (La. Ct. App. 2011); review denied, 78 So. 3d 138 (La. 2012); cert. granted, 568 U.S. 936 (2012) U.S. Const. amend. VI official slip opinion https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/11-9953_4h25.pdf Oral Argument https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcripts/2012/11-9953.pdf Cornell https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/11-9953 Oyez https://www.oyez.org/cases/2012/11-9953 Nevada v. Jackson Nevada, et al. v. Calvin O'Neil Jackson 569 U.S. 505 June 3, 2013 In a trial for rape, the defendant sought to introduce extrinsic evidence to impeach the accuser by showing that they had accused the defendant in the past. The exception to the rape-shield rule required the defendant to give notice of this intention so that the court could hold a hearing about it. No decision of the Supreme Court clearly establishes that the notice requirement is unconstitutional, and the Supreme Court has never held that the Confrontation Clause entitles a criminal defendant to introduce extrinsic evidence for impeachment. Because the habeas petition needed to be supported by clearly established law, the court denied it. Ninth Circuit reversed and remanded. Petition denied, D. Nev.; rev'd, Jackson v. Nevada, 688 F.3d 1091 (9th Cir. 2012) Jackson v. Nevada, 723 F.3d 1114 (9th Cir. 2013) U.S. Const. amend. VI; Nev. Rev. Stat. §50.085(3) (2011) official slip opinion https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/12-694_5368.pdf FindLaw https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-supreme-court/12-694.html Ryan v. Schad Charles L. Ryan, Director, Arizona Department of Corrections v. Edward Harold Schad 570 U.S. 521 June 24, 2013 The Ninth Circuit abused its discretion when it neglected to issue its mandate after the Supreme Court denied certiorari. Ninth Circuit reversed, vacated, and remanded. Petition denied, sub nom. Schad v. Schriro, 454 F. Supp. 2d 897 (D. Ariz. 2006); rev'd in part, aff'd in part, remanded, sub nom. Schad v. Ryan, 606 F. 3d 1022 (9th Cir. 2010); vacated and remanded, 563 U.S. ___ (2011); aff'd, 671 F.3d 708 (9th Cir. 2011); motion for rehearing and for rehearing en banc denied, No. 07–99005 (9th Cir. Feb. 28, 2012); motion to vacate judgment denied, No. 07–99005 (9th Cir. July 27, 2012); cert. denied, 568 U.S. ___ (2012); petition for rehearing denied, 568 U.S. ___ (2013); stay of mandate denied, No. 07–99005 (9th Cir. Feb. 1, 2013); remanded, No. 07–99005, 2013 WL 791610 (9th Cir. Feb. 26, 2013); stay of execution granted, No. 07–99005 (9th Cir. Mar. 1, 2013); motion for rehearing and for rehearing en banc denied, 709 F.3d 855 (9th Cir. 2013); application to vacate stay of execution denied, 568 U.S. ___ (2013) Fed. R. App. P. 41(d)(2)(D) official slip opinion https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/12-1084_ap6c.pdf Cornell https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/12-1084 See also List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 568 List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 569 List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 570 References https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/slipopinion/12 2012 Term Opinions of the Court Supreme Court of the United States October 7, 2013 2012 October 1, 2012 October 6, 2013 Category:United States Supreme Court per curiam opinions Category:Lists of 2012 term United States Supreme Court opinions *2012 per curiam