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 May 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
Syed v. Lee
Maryland Supreme Court held that victim's representatives had a right to participate in person a hearing on a motion to vacate defendant's conviction under state constitution's requirement that crime victims be treated with dignity and sensitivity
Jane Doe v. Manchester School District
Plaintiff claims that school district's policy that staff generally should not inform parents when a student identifies as gender nonconforming, absent student consent, violates parents' rights
Bienvenu v. Defendant 1
Held that statute, which retroactively revived certain prescribed child sex abuse claims for limited three-year period, conflicted with state constitutional substantive due process protection against disturbing vested rights
State v. Gibbons
Ruled that a statute imposing a mandatory minimum $5,000 fine without regard to a criminal defendant's ability to pay was facially unconstitutional in violation of Montana's proportionality requirement and the Excessive Fines and Fees Clause
Office of the State of Public Defender v. Bonta
Plaintiffs, a group of civil right and legal organizations, challenge the legality of the California death penalty statute, claiming it is racially discriminatory and violates the state constitution.
City of Dallas v. Employees Retirement Fund of City of Dallas
Held that a city cannot delegate to a third party the perpetual right to veto changes in a city ordinance under art. 11 section 5 of the Texas Constitution
Board of Education v. Cabell County Public Library
Ruled that the restoration of equalization payments from the county board of education, pursuant to Special Acts, violated equal protection insofar as the payments required that funding district and library to be part of the county board of education's excess levy proposal
Catholic Charities Bureau, Inc. v. State
Held that determination that corporate subentities of Roman Catholic diocese's social ministry arm were not operated primarily for religious purposes did not constitute as-applied violation of Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses
Thompson v. Fhuere
Held that defendant's challenge to constitutionality of death sentence, together with challenge to postconviction court's modification of sentence rather than remand for resentencing, were not cognizable on postconviction review after Governor commuted death sentence
State v. McKelvey
Held that a state trooper's use of telephoto lens to enhance photographs of defendant's greenhouse from aerial surveillance was a "search" under the state's search and seizure clause
