What is a major difference between a majority opinion and dissenting opinion issued by the supreme court?

Answer 1

A majority opinion presents the official reasoning behind the courts ruling while a concurring opinion offers different reasoning.

Answer 2

A majority opinion explains the reasoning behind the courts ruling while a dissenting opinion explains a disagreement with the courts ruling

Answer 3

A concurring opinion supports a Supreme Court ruling, while a dissenting opinion opposes it.

Answer 4

A concurring opinion supports a Supreme Court ruling, while a dissenting opinion opposes it.

Answer 5

What is a major difference between a majority opinion and a concurring opinion issued by the Supreme Court?

Answer 6

Majority: when the majority (5 or more of the nine justices) write an opinion on an issue and that opinion is the one that prevails.

Dissenting: The other justices who disagreed with the majority opinion sometimes write a dissenting opinion to express their disagreements (dissent).

Concurrence: Sometimes, you have justices who agree with the ultimate decision made by the majority, but disagree as to the reasons why they came to that ultimate decision. For example, let's say that the majority concluded that gay marriage is a fundamental right given to homosexuals through equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment. However, one of the justices agreed that the ultimate decision to allow gay marriage is justified, but disagreed that it was because of equal protection; rather, it was because of the right to privacy instead. This would be a concurring opinion because the concurring justice agrees with the ultimate decision that the majority came up with, but disagreed with why they came up with that conclusion.

Answer 7

The majority opinion, or opinion of the Court, is the official decision in a case. It sets binding precedents for all courts below the supreme court and may change how laws are interpreted or applied, or even if they are allowed to stand at all.

Their really is no such thing as a "minority opinion." The term you're looking for is "dissenting opinion(s)," which may be written by anyone who disagrees with the majority and wants to state their reasons officially. A case may have no dissenting opinions, one opinion signed by more than one justices, or many dissenting opinions, and the reasoning can vary from one dissent to the next.

Dissenting opinions carry no legal weight, but may be cited as precedent in future cases. Occasionally, the dissent eventually becomes more influential than the original "majority opinion."

Answer 8

A majority opinion presents the official reasoning behind the Court's ruling, while a concurring opinion offers different reasoning.