State Case Database
Search State Court Report's database of significant state supreme court decisions and pending cases. Download decisions and briefs for cases that develop state constitutional law. This is a selected database and does not include every state supreme court case. See methodology and "How to Use the State Case Database" for more information.
This database is updated monthly, although individual cases may be updated more frequently. Last updated comprehensively with cases decided through April 2025.
Featured Cases
Access Independent Health Services v. Wrigley
North Dakota Supreme Court upheld state's abortion ban despite three of five justices concluding a health-risk exception was unconstitutionally vague, because the state constitution requires four justices to declare legislation unconstitutional
Clarke v. Town of Newburgh
New York Court of Appeals held local government could not assert state or federal equal protection challenge to the vote dilution provision of the state's Voting Rights Act
League of Women Voters of Utah v. Utah State Legislature (LWV 1)
Utah Supreme Court sent partisan gerrymandering case back to lower court to consider whether the legislature violated voters' fundamental right to "reform or alter" their government when it overturned redistricting reforms passed by initiative. Lower court found legislators violated that right and struck the current congressional map, adopting an alternative proposed by the plaintiffs
People v. Bass
Concurrences would have addressed whether under Illinois' "limited lockstep" approach the state constitution provides greater protections than the Fourth Amendment
People v. Bochenek
Ruled that statute setting venue for identity theft cases in the place where the victim resides does not violate right to jury trial where the crime is alleged to have been committed
State v. Dortch
Dissent wrote that applying preservation requirement to defendant whose guilty plea was accepted without a competency hearing after trial court questioned his competency would deny his right to a meaningful appeal
Barnett v. Jones
Ruled that local law dictating how proceeds distributed to a county should be allocated is constitutional because no existing general law provides for the same matter
Butler v. Watson
Ruled that clause requiring distribution of ballot initiative signatures across the state's five congressional districts was rendered inoperable by reduction in number of state's congressional districts
Bayou Bridge Pipeline, LLC v. 38.00 Acres
Ruled that takings clause requiring compensation to the full extent of landowner's loss provides authority for award of attorney fees and litigation costs
Lowther v. Town of Bastrop
Ruled that municipality is constitutionally mandated to satisfy court order to pay back wages to firefighters by clause excepting fire minimum wages from overall constitutional limitation on unfunded mandates
McCarty v. Arkansas State Plant Board
Ruled statute permitting private entities to appoint members to a governmental board was an unconstitutional delegation of legislative appointment power
In re Childers-Gray
Ruled that adjudication of sex-change petitions is within the judicial power, and does not violate the constitution's separation of powers clause or present a nonjusticiable political question
Protect the Adirondacks! Inc. v. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Ruled that state's plan to construct community connector trails designed for snowmobile use in the state's forest violated constitution's "forever wild" clause
