The Supreme Court Footnote

Hoffer’s prose is elegant and entertaining. This is essential for dedicated court watchers and a fascinating new perspective for casual readers. ~Publishers Weekly

Peter Charles Hoffer’s The Supreme Court Footnote: A Surprising History shows how many clues into the justices’ thinking become available after a ruling—at the bottom of the page. ~Inside Higher Ed

A startling examination of eight influential Supreme Court cases... Hoffer imbues the seemingly arcane topic with drive and urgency. In a time when many see the Supreme Court as politicized and divisive, The Supreme Court Footnote interprets the intricacies of the court’s decisions with intelligence and vision. ~Foreword Reviews

In The Supreme Court Footnote, Hoffer uses several landmark cases to track the rise of judicial footnotes and to explore legal reasoning along the way... [he argues] with nuance and academic rigor. ~Wall Street Journal

A delightful and erudite romp in the underbrush of the Supreme Court through American history, one that tracks the Court’s path through time and illuminates its major landmark decisions – while hinting at suppressed, below-the-line alternative stories that might have been. A really fun read. ~John Fabian Witt, author of Lincoln’s Code: The Laws of War in American History

The Supreme Court Footnote provides a valuable guide to important issues of constitutional law and jurisprudence. This engaging account of how Supreme Court justices have used footnotes offers readers significant insights into Supreme Court history and opinion writing practices. Hoffer’s eight case studies show how footnotes can illuminate the justices’ thinking and guide the development of the law. ~Mark Tushnet, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law emeritus, Harvard Law School

A scholarly romp casting light on the most famous footnotes in Supreme Court history as well as more obscure footnotes that ought to be better known. Peter Charles Hoffer provides an accessible account of why reading all the words of Supreme Court opinions matter and why they matter. ~Mark Graber, Regents Professor, University of Maryland Francis Carey School of Law