Glossary
Dissent
An opinion written by a judge or justice on a multi-judge court who disagrees with the majority's decision. Dissents don't change the outcome of the case but can influence future cases and Supreme Court justices' thinking.
When an appellate court has more than one judge (typically three on a panel, or all the judges on en banc review), the majority opinion controls the result. Judges who disagree can write dissents explaining why they would have ruled differently.
Dissents have no immediate legal force: the majority wins. But they're often cited later, especially when the law is unsettled. Some famous dissents have eventually become majority opinions decades later as the legal landscape shifted.