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Simple English definitions for legal terms
divided court
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A quick definition of divided court:
A divided court is when a group of judges or justices cannot agree on a decision in a case. This often happens when the majority vote is very close, like when five judges vote one way and four vote another. This can happen in the highest court in the United States, the Supreme Court.
A more thorough explanation:
Definition: A divided court is an appellate court where the judges do not all agree on the outcome of a particular case. This is especially true when the majority is slim, such as in a 5-to-4 decision of the U.S. Supreme Court.
One example of a divided court is the landmark case of Brown v. Board of Education in 1954. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, but the decision was not unanimous. The vote was 9-0, but some of the justices had different reasons for their decision.
Another example is the case of Obergefell v. Hodges in 2015. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples have the right to marry, but the decision was again not unanimous. The vote was 5-4, with the majority opinion written by Justice Anthony Kennedy.
These examples illustrate how a divided court can have a significant impact on the outcome of a case. In both cases, the decisions were controversial and had far-reaching consequences for society. The fact that the courts were divided shows that there were strong arguments on both sides of the issue.