A court decision is a ruling made by a judge in a case based on facts and law. The ruling can be an order that settles an intermediate matter, a decision that can be appealed, or a final decision which settles all legal issues in the case. Decisions are also called judgments, opinions, or rulings. A judge’s decision can include a written explanation of their reasoning, an order telling parties in a case what to do, and a list of other cases the decision applies to. A decision can be a binding precedent, meaning that lower courts must follow it without compelling reasons or significantly different facts or issues.
In higher courts, such as the United States Supreme Court, decisions are usually numbered and published in a book known as a syllabus. The syllabus gives a summary of the case history and discusses how the judges came to their decision in the case. The end of the decision includes the opinion written by the majority and may list individual Justices who joined in that opinion. There is sometimes a dissenting opinion, written by a judge who disagrees with the majority opinion. Dissenting opinions do not have precedential value in other cases, however.
After reviewing briefs submitted by lawyers, the Supreme Court hears in-person arguments from each side of a case. During oral arguments, Justices ask the attorneys questions and give them 30 minutes to explain their positions in the case. The Justices then decide on a decision. The clerk records (or enters) the decision in the case file, and it is available to read in the clerk’s office.