During November the court handed down only one signed decision in an argued case. But individual justices issued seven different opinions about cases that the court did not grant. Justices issued only nine such nondecision opinions during the entire 2012-2013 term that ended in June.
Two of the latest series of opinions were comments for and against pending stay applications in a Texas abortion case. Three were dissents from the denial of review or certiorari, explaining why individual justices would have taken up the case. And two were labeled opinions “respecting the denial” of review, in which justices agreed the cases should have been rejected — but suggesting that the issue involved needs to be resolved soon. In all of these circumstances, the court normally acts without any justice making a peep.
