A petition for certiorari before judgment, in the Supreme Court of the United States, is a petition for a writ of certiorari in which the Supreme Court is asked to immediately review the decision of a United States District Court, without an appeal having been decided by a United States Court of Appeals, for the purpose of expediting the proceedings and obtaining a final decision.

Certiorari before judgment is rarely granted. Supreme Court Rule 11 states that this procedure will be followed "only upon a showing that the case is of such imperative public importance as to justify deviation from normal appellate practice and to require immediate determination in this Court."2023 Rules of the Supreme Court

In some situations, the court has also granted certiorari before judgment so that it could review a case at the same time as a similar case that had already reached the court otherwise.Shapiro et al., Supreme Court Practice (11th ed. 2019), Sec. 2.4

The power to grant certiorari before judgment is provided by statute, which authorizes the Supreme Court to review "cases in the courts of appeals" by granting certiorari "before or after rendition of judgment or decree". A party to the case may petition to the Supreme Court "at any time before judgment", after a court of appeals has docketed the case. Only cases in a United States court of appeals are eligible, not any other court.Shapiro et al., Supreme Court Practice (11th ed. 2019), Sec. 6.1(b)(4) Any party can file the petition, regardless of which party originally prevailed in the district court.Shapiro et al., Supreme Court Practice (11th ed. 2019), Sec. 2.2, p. 2-12

Well-known cases in which the Supreme Court has granted certiorari before judgment and heard the case on an expedited basis have included Ex parte Quirin (1942), U.S. v. United Mine Workers (1947), Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952), U.S. v. Nixon (1974), Dames & Moore v. Regan (1981), Northern Pipeline Co. v. Marathon Pipe Line Co. (1982), U.S. v. Booker (2005), Department of Commerce v. New York (2019),Order list: 586 U.S. ___, Friday, February 15, 2019 and Whole Woman's Health v. Jackson (2021).Whole Woman's Health v. Jackson, No. 21-463.

List of petitions granted The Supreme Court granted certiorari before judgment only three times between 1988 and 2004, and zero times from then until February 2019. Since 2019, the court has granted certiorari before judgment in more cases.. See also:

+ Certiorari before judgment granted since 1988Case Date grantedClark v. RoemerJune 28, 1991Clark v. Roemer, 501 U.S. 1246 (1991)Gratz v. Bollinger Dec 2, 2002Gratz v. Bollinger, 537 U.S. 1044 (2002)United States v. FanfanAug 2, 2004United States v. Fanfan, 542 U.S. 956 (2004)Department of Commerce v. New YorkFeb 15, 2019[ Docket for No. 18-966, Department of Commerce v. New York]Trump v. NAACPJune 28, 2019[ Docket for No. 18-587, Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of the University of California], consolidated with Trump v. NAACP and McAleenan v. VidalMcAleenan v. VidalJune 28, 2019Ross v. CaliforniaJune 28, 2019[ Docket for No. 18-1214, Ross v. California]Harvest Rock Church, Inc. v. NewsomDec 3, 2020[ Docket for No. 20A94, Harvest Rock Church, Inc. v. Newsom]High Plains Harvest Church v. PolisDec 15, 2020High Plains Harvest Church v. Polis, 592 U.S. ___, 141 S.Ct. 527 (2020)Robinson v. MurphyDec 15, 2020[ Docket for No. 20A95, Robinson v. Murphy]United States v. HiggsJan 15, 2021United States v. Higgs, 592 U.S. ___, 141 S.Ct. 645 (2021)Gish v. NewsomFeb 8, 2021[ Docket for No. 20A120, Gish v. Newsom]Whole Woman's Health v. JacksonOct 22, 2021[ Docket for No. 21-463, Whole Woman's Health v. Jackson]United States v. TexasOct 22, 2021United States v. Texas, 595 U.S. ___, 142 S.Ct. 14 (2021)ZF Automotive US, Inc. v. Luxshare, Ltd.Dec 10, 2021[ Docket for No. 21-401, ZF Automotive US, Inc. v. Luxshare, Ltd.]Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North CarolinaJan 24, 2022[ Docket for No. 21-707, Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina]Merrill v. CasterFeb 7, 2022Merrill v. Caster, 595 U.S. ___, 142 S.Ct. 879 (2022)Ardoin v. RobinsonJune 28, 2022[ Docket for No. 21A814, Ardoin v. Robinson]Brnovich v. IsaacsonJune 30, 2022[ Docket for No. 21A222, Brnovich v. Isaacson]United States v. TexasJuly 21, 2022[ Docket for No. 22-58, United States v. Texas]Biden v. NebraskaDec 1, 2022[ Docket for No. 22-506, Biden v. Nebraska]Department of Education v. BrownDec 12, 2022[ Docket for No. 22-535, Department of Education v. Brown] Moyle v. United StatesIdaho v. United States Jan 5, 2024[ Docket for No. 23-726, Moyle v. United States] Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump Sep 9, 2025[ Docket for No. 24-1287, Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump] Trump v. Slaughter Sep 22, 2025[ Docket for No. 25-332, Trump v. Slaughter] Trump v. Barbara Dec 5, 2025[ Docket for No. 25-365, Trump v. Barbara] Mullin v. DoeTrump v. Miot Mar 16, 2026[ Docket for No. 25-1083, Mullin v. Doe]

See also Leapfrog appeal, the equivalent in England & Wales and in Ireland Procedures of the Supreme Court of the United States Shadow docket King's Bench jurisdiction, a similar jurisdictional procedure in some state supreme courts

Notes

References S. Shapiro et al., Supreme Court Practice (BNA Books, 10th ed. 2013), section 2.4