How often does the Supreme Court of the US rule unanimously? The first split decision in the new Roberts court was issued today, and amongst the media frenzy is the little gem that the first 11 rulings by the 8-member court were unanimous. What were these cases, and why did they make it to the supreme court if the ruling was that obvious?
one of the functions of the Supreme Court is to resolve disputes between the different Circuit Courts of Appeals. It may be that the members of the Court were all in agreement on how a case should be decided, but take it because of conflicting lower court cases that need to be resolved.