Trump v. Barbara · ¶385

The Court does not ordinarily put so much weight on past decisions’ discussion of matters not before the Court. “It is a maxim not to be disregarded,” this Court has always admonished, “that general expressions, in every opinion, are to be taken in connection with the case in which those expressions are used.” Cohens v. Virginia, 6 Wheat. 264, 399 (1821). Thus, if they “go beyond the case, they may be respected, but ought not to control the judgment in a subsequent suit when the very point is presented for decision.” Ibid. “Instead, we emphasize, our opinions dispose of discrete cases and controversies and they must be read with a careful eye to context.” National Pork Producers Council v. Ross, 598 U. S. 356, 373–374 (2023). After all, “[t]he question actually before the Court is investigated with care, and considered in its full extent,” but “[o]ther principles which may serve to…

slip opinion, revised 7/01/26
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