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Washington V. Seattle School District No. 1 (1981)

 

Document 1

From: Warren E. Burger
To: Conference
Copied: None
On: March 31st, 1982
Action: Propose Disposition in Case (Vote in a Case)
DIG (dismiss cert as improvidently granted); want to reach merits instead of DIG; would not DIG; affirm; reverse; remand; vacate; moot; court lacks jurisdiction; conference vote; withhold vote for now; defer vote; adhere to conference vote; initial vote in case; change conference vote; memo asking how others' vote on disposition
Action: Memo About Opinion Assignment
This excludes memos that assign the opinion (see Code 606), but includes memos where a justice expresses the view that a case should be reassigned or a response to a majority opinion assignment; justice may request that majority opinion not be assigned to that justice; a justice may question why the opinion was not assigned; a justice (perhaps the Chief Justice) may tell a justice to assign the opinion; a memo may discuss not assigning the opinion to any justice

Document 2

From: Warren E. Burger
To: Lewis F. Powell
Copied: William H. Rehnquist, Sanda Day O'Connor
On: April 2nd, 1982
Action: Dissent Opinion Assignment
The memo may ask another justice to write a dissent; a justice may indicate that the dissent will not be assigned right now; memo responding to a dissent assignment (but not accepting assignment, which would be Code 204)

Document 3

From: William J. Brennan, Jr.
To: Warren E. Burger
Copied: Conference
On: April 2nd, 1982
Action: Majority Opinion Assignment
This may be an assignment of either the majority opinion or a memorandum opinion; memo may state that a justice has agreed to undertake the opinion of the Court; memo reassigns the case

Document 4

From: Lewis F. Powell
To: Warren E. Burger
Copied: William H. Rehnquist, Sanda Day O'Connor
On: April 5th, 1982
Action: Will Write Dissenting Opinion
A memo where a justice states that he or she will circulate a dissenting opinion draft, including that a dissenting opinion will be out soon or that a revised draft of the dissenting opinion will be circulated; this also applies to statements responding to dissent assignments like will be glad to write dissent, self-assignment of dissent (e.g., we are in dissent and I will write it), or requesting permission to write dissent (e.g., is it ok if I write a dissent)

Document 5

From: Harry A. Blackmun
To: Conference
Copied: None
On: May 31st, 1982
Action: Majority Opinion
This refers to a majority opinion draft

Document 6

From: William J. Brennan, Jr.
To: Harry A. Blackmun
Copied: Conference
On: June 1st, 1982
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 7

From: Byron R. White
To: Harry A. Blackmun
Copied: Conference
On: June 1st, 1982
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 8

From: John Paul Stevens
To: Harry A. Blackmun
Copied: Conference
On: June 2nd, 1982
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: Thurgood Marshall
To: Harry A. Blackmun
Copied: Conference
On: June 2nd, 1982
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: John Paul Stevens
To: Harry A. Blackmun
Copied: None
On: June 2nd, 1982
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 11

From: Harry A. Blackmun
To: John Paul Stevens
Copied: None
On: June 2nd, 1982
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 12

From: Sanda Day O'Connor
To: Harry A. Blackmun
Copied: Conference
On: June 3rd, 1982
Action: Await Dissent
Justice indicates that he or she awaits a dissenting opinion, including opinions that dissent in part

Document 13

From: Harry A. Blackmun
To: Conference
Copied: None
On: June 3rd, 1982
Action: Majority Opinion
This refers to a majority opinion draft

Document 14

From: Lewis F. Powell
To: Conference
Copied: None
On: June 17th, 1982
Action: Dissenting Opinion
This refers to a dissenting opinion draft, including dissents from denial of certiorari if in opinion form

Document 15

From: Sanda Day O'Connor
To: Lewis F. Powell
Copied: Conference
On: June 18th, 1982
Action: Join Dissent
Memos where a justice states that they join a dissenting opinion, including joining the dissent in part, joining a dissent from denial of cert, or joining a dissent at foot. The identity of the dissenting opinion author who receives the join is located in the JOINED variable.

Document 16

From: Warren E. Burger
To: Lewis F. Powell
Copied: Conference
On: June 18th, 1982
Action: Join Dissent
Memos where a justice states that they join a dissenting opinion, including joining the dissent in part, joining a dissent from denial of cert, or joining a dissent at foot. The identity of the dissenting opinion author who receives the join is located in the JOINED variable.

Document 17

From: Lewis F. Powell
To: Conference
Copied: None
On: June 21st, 1982
Action: Dissenting Opinion
This refers to a dissenting opinion draft, including dissents from denial of certiorari if in opinion form

Document 18

From: William H. Rehnquist
To: Lewis F. Powell
Copied: Conference
On: June 21st, 1982
Action: Join Dissent
Memos where a justice states that they join a dissenting opinion, including joining the dissent in part, joining a dissent from denial of cert, or joining a dissent at foot. The identity of the dissenting opinion author who receives the join is located in the JOINED variable.

Document 19

From: Harry A. Blackmun
To: Conference
Copied: None
On: June 21st, 1982
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 20

From: Harry A. Blackmun
To: Conference
Copied: None
On: June 23rd, 1982
Action: Majority Opinion
This refers to a majority opinion draft

Document 21

From: Lewis F. Powell
To: Harry A. Blackmun
Copied: Conference
On: June 23rd, 1982
Action: Separate Opinion Author's Response
Circulation of Change to Separate Opinion (e.g., footnote, portion of opinion, adding paragraph); this occurs in a memo, not on a draft opinion; circulation of change to unlabeled opinion

Document 22

From: Harry A. Blackmun
To: Lewis F. Powell
Copied: Warren E. Burger
On: June 24th, 1982
Action: Will Not Modify Majority Opinion
A memo where a justice states that he or she will not change the majority opinion or will not circulate another draft of the majority opinion. This is not in response to a justice’s suggestion, which is coded 806.
Action: Announcements of Opinion
This includes memos about the timing of a decision announcement (e.g., can we hold this case for a week; opinion should be handed down tomorrow; opinion not ready for case to come down; take as much time as you need); memos about the pace of opinion writing (e.g., a justice’s delay in a case or apologizing for a delay or holding up another justice); memo requesting that a justice make an announcement regarding an opinion

Document 23

From: Lewis F. Powell
To: Conference
Copied: None
On: June 25th, 1982
Action: Dissenting Opinion
This refers to a dissenting opinion draft, including dissents from denial of certiorari if in opinion form