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 August 2025.
Featured Cases
McDougle v. Scott
Virginia Supreme Court, in a split decision, nullified a constitutional amendment approved by voters that would have redrawn the state's congressional districts, finding the legislative process used for the amendment violated the state constitution
Hoke County Board of Education v. State of North Carolina
The North Carolina Supreme Court overturned its own precedent and put an end to more than 30 years of litigation involving the funding of public education in the state
Commonwealth v. Lee
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that mandating a life sentence, without the possibility of parole, for “felony murder” — a legal doctrine that allows someone to be prosecuted for murder for any death that occurs during the commission of a separate felony, even if the defendant never meant to kill anyone — violates the Pennsylvania Constitution’s ban on “cruel” punishments
Williams Alaska Petroleum, Inc. v. State
Ruled that the State could pursue legal action for harm to a right held by the public following the release of hazardous substances that contaminated local groundwater
Kranz v. City of Bloomington
Ruled that an unconstitutional provision in a proposed charter amendment was not severable because severance would deprive the amendment of its efficacy or strength
State v. Conner
Concurrence would have held that title of amended burglary statute violated state constitution’s title expression requirement for legislation, but that such defect was harmless
St. Lawrence Cnty. v. City of Ogdensburg
Ruled that local law amending a city charter to relinquish responsibility of delinquent property tax enforcement to the county did not violate home rule
In re Judge Christian Coomer
Ruled that judicial conduct code does not apply to conduct before the person became a judicial candidate and that discipline for conduct outside of the judicial capacity requires bad faith
People v. Johnson
Concurrence wrote that “police-initiated encounters with individuals are unconstitutional absent reasonable suspicion of criminality"
Idaho Power Co. v. Idaho State Tax Commission
Held that federal railroad law did not preempt state constitution’s requirement for tax uniformity, ruled taxing commission may not tax railroad properties differently than plaintiffs’ properties
State ex rel. Grooms v. Privette
Ruled court lacked constitutional power to punish court clerk for contempt for failing to perform statutorily-required duties that were unrelated to court’s judicial function
State v. Noli
Ruled police’s expansion of scope of traffic stop into an unrelated illegal drug investigation violated constitution’s protections against unreasonable search and seizure
Commonwealth v. Rader
Ruled police stop and frisk of defendant did not violate state constitutional search and seizure and equal protection provisions, but defendants may make equal protection claims in the context of pedestrian stops
