Strategies in Certiorari Voting On the United States Supreme Court: a Reevaluation

ocial scientists are interested in how institutions set their agendas. The Supreme Court has virtual complete control over its agenda. We are interested, therefore, in how the Court exercises this control. In every fully argued and fully decided case before the United States Supreme Court the justices vote at least three times. The first vote is the vote to hear the case. It is usually a vote to grant or to deny a petition for a writ of certiorari (cert), for most cases seeking review by the Supreme Court come to the Court by the cert route. If the Court grants certiorari the case is set down for oral argument. After oral argument, the justices meet in secret conference to decide whether to reverse or to affirm the decision of the lower court. This