Show / Hide Files

Northeast Marine Terminal Co. V. Caputo (1976)

 

Document 1

From: Thurgood Marshall
To: Conference
Copied: None
On: June 2nd, 1977
Action: Majority Opinion
This refers to a majority opinion draft

Document 2

From: John Paul Stevens
To: Thurgood Marshall
Copied: Conference
On: June 3rd, 1977
Action: Join Majority Opinion
Memos where a justice joins the majority opinion includes please join me; I agree; I am still with you; I acquiesce; I will go along; I dissent but will be silent; graveyard join or dissent. This code includes join of memorandum opinions if it is written by the assigned author, orders if it disposes of case, decrees, per curiam opinions. It also includes statements that the justice joins, but subject to what others might write.

Document 3

From: Lewis F. Powell
To: Thurgood Marshall
Copied: Conference
On: June 3rd, 1977
Action: Join Majority Opinion
Memos where a justice joins the majority opinion includes please join me; I agree; I am still with you; I acquiesce; I will go along; I dissent but will be silent; graveyard join or dissent. This code includes join of memorandum opinions if it is written by the assigned author, orders if it disposes of case, decrees, per curiam opinions. It also includes statements that the justice joins, but subject to what others might write.

Document 4

From: Byron R. White
To: Thurgood Marshall
Copied: Conference
On: June 3rd, 1977
Action: Join Majority Opinion
Memos where a justice joins the majority opinion includes please join me; I agree; I am still with you; I acquiesce; I will go along; I dissent but will be silent; graveyard join or dissent. This code includes join of memorandum opinions if it is written by the assigned author, orders if it disposes of case, decrees, per curiam opinions. It also includes statements that the justice joins, but subject to what others might write.
Action: Suggestion to Majority Opinion
This includes memo with broad statements including that a justice cannot join the opinion, cannot join a part of the opinion, does not agree with the opinion, or has continuing doubts with the opinion; memos that indicate that the author's change is not enough; memos that make suggestions for specific changes to majority opinion or that express reservations about some aspect of the majority opinion; this code is also given for suggestions to memorandum opinions by an assigned author

Document 5

From: William J. Brennan, Jr.
To: Thurgood Marshall
Copied: Conference
On: June 3rd, 1977
Action: Join Majority Opinion
Memos where a justice joins the majority opinion includes please join me; I agree; I am still with you; I acquiesce; I will go along; I dissent but will be silent; graveyard join or dissent. This code includes join of memorandum opinions if it is written by the assigned author, orders if it disposes of case, decrees, per curiam opinions. It also includes statements that the justice joins, but subject to what others might write.

Document 6

From: Potter Stewart
To: Thurgood Marshall
Copied: Conference
On: June 6th, 1977
Action: Join Majority Opinion
Memos where a justice joins the majority opinion includes please join me; I agree; I am still with you; I acquiesce; I will go along; I dissent but will be silent; graveyard join or dissent. This code includes join of memorandum opinions if it is written by the assigned author, orders if it disposes of case, decrees, per curiam opinions. It also includes statements that the justice joins, but subject to what others might write.
Action: Endorse Another Justice's Suggestion
Memos where a justice states agreement with another justice's suggestion to the majority opinion author (e.g., I am about where Justice X is, agree with Justice X's letter to you, I have no problem with Justice X's suggestion, agree with another justice's comment, is Justice X's suggestion ok with you). The identity of the justice whose suggestion is endorsed is located in the JOINED variable.

Document 7

From: Warren E. Burger
To: Thurgood Marshall
Copied: Conference
On: June 6th, 1977
Action: Join Majority Opinion
Memos where a justice joins the majority opinion includes please join me; I agree; I am still with you; I acquiesce; I will go along; I dissent but will be silent; graveyard join or dissent. This code includes join of memorandum opinions if it is written by the assigned author, orders if it disposes of case, decrees, per curiam opinions. It also includes statements that the justice joins, but subject to what others might write.
Action: Endorse Another Justice's Suggestion
Memos where a justice states agreement with another justice's suggestion to the majority opinion author (e.g., I am about where Justice X is, agree with Justice X's letter to you, I have no problem with Justice X's suggestion, agree with another justice's comment, is Justice X's suggestion ok with you). The identity of the justice whose suggestion is endorsed is located in the JOINED variable.

Document 8

From: William H. Rehnquist
To: Thurgood Marshall
Copied: Conference
On: June 7th, 1977
Action: Join Majority Opinion
Memos where a justice joins the majority opinion includes please join me; I agree; I am still with you; I acquiesce; I will go along; I dissent but will be silent; graveyard join or dissent. This code includes join of memorandum opinions if it is written by the assigned author, orders if it disposes of case, decrees, per curiam opinions. It also includes statements that the justice joins, but subject to what others might write.

Document 9

From: Harry A. Blackmun
To: Thurgood Marshall
Copied: Conference
On: June 7th, 1977
Action: Join Majority Opinion
Memos where a justice joins the majority opinion includes please join me; I agree; I am still with you; I acquiesce; I will go along; I dissent but will be silent; graveyard join or dissent. This code includes join of memorandum opinions if it is written by the assigned author, orders if it disposes of case, decrees, per curiam opinions. It also includes statements that the justice joins, but subject to what others might write.

Document 10

From: Thurgood Marshall
To: Byron R. White
Copied: None
On: June 7th, 1977
Action: Majority Opinion Author's Response
May be response to a suggestion, reservation, or a separate opinion; may also say that author will respond to another opinion; may state majority opinion author's change to opinion that was not prompted by another justice; may indicate that the opinion is different from the conference discussion; may be a circulation of a portion of the opinion (a footnote, multiple pages without circulating the whole opinion); may be a suggestion from the majority opinion author regarding several options for changing majority opinion; may be a suggestion from the author for a change that could be made to opinion

Document 11

From: Byron R. White
To: Thurgood Marshall
Copied: Conference
On: June 8th, 1977
Action: Join Majority Opinion
Memos where a justice joins the majority opinion includes please join me; I agree; I am still with you; I acquiesce; I will go along; I dissent but will be silent; graveyard join or dissent. This code includes join of memorandum opinions if it is written by the assigned author, orders if it disposes of case, decrees, per curiam opinions. It also includes statements that the justice joins, but subject to what others might write.

Document 12

From: Thurgood Marshall
To: Warren E. Burger
Copied: Conference
On: June 9th, 1977
Action: Memos about Cert Votes
A justice's cert vote (grant, deny, or note probable jurisdiction, join three); suggest they grant cert for specific issue; discussion of which questions cert grant should be limited to; adhere to cert vote; memo about cert petition (e.g., listing it on the conference list (special order list)); case should be relisted; make suggestions to proposed questions in case; any memo about listing or relisting a case

Document 13

From: Warren E. Burger
To: Thurgood Marshall
Copied: Conference
On: June 10th, 1977
Action: Agree with Opinion Author
Memo expresses justice's agreement with a majority opinion author's proposal, footnote, or proposed change; justice might state that he or she is open to the change

Document 14

From: Thurgood Marshall
To: Conference
Copied: None
On: June 13th, 1977
Action: Majority Opinion
This refers to a majority opinion draft

Document 15

From: Thurgood Marshall
To: Conference
Copied: None
On: June 20th, 1977
Action: Proposes Disposition of Held Cases
Memo lists cases held for an opinion and gives cert votes or votes on the merits for the held cases; justice may state that held cases should be discussed at conference