The Supreme Court increasingly decides urgent matters through an emergency or "shadow" docket without full briefings or oral arguments. Time constraints lead to brief, unsigned orders that offer little explanation of how the nine justices reached rulings. These emergency orders have grown in number and handle high-stakes issues such as immigration and mass layoffs. President Donald Trump filed at least 22 emergency applications in the first seven months of his second term, exceeding 19 during the previous full term. Frequent government requests and routine grants signal a behavioral change in how the court responds to emergency relief without changing formal rules.
Behind the thick velvet drapes and marble columns of the United States Supreme Court, a creeping trend has emerged. More and more, decisions are being made without full briefings or oral arguments. Time is tight, and judgements are often rendered in brief, unsigned orders that offer little to no explanation about how the nine justices arrived at their ruling. These orders are the result of the "shadow docket", and their numbers are growing.
Aaron Saiger, a professor at the Fordham University School of Law, explained that, unlike any other administration in recent history, Trump has relied heavily on emergency relief from the court. "The government asked for it rarely, and the court granted it rarely. Now, the government is asking for it routinely, and the court is granting it routinely," Saiger told Al Jazeera. "That doesn't show a change in the underlying rules of the system, but it is a definite change in the way that the system is behaving."
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