Yovino v Rizo

choi

Yovino v Rizo (Feb 25, 2019) 586 US _ (per curiam)
https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/18pdf/18-272_4hdj.pdf
("A judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit [based in San Francisco], the Honorable Stephen Reinhardt, died on March 29, 2018, but the Ninth Circuit counted his vote * * * In the present case, Judge Reinhardt was listed as the author of an en banc decision issued on April 9, 2018, 11 days after he passed away. * * * Because Judge Reinhardt was no longer a judge at the time when the en banc decision in this case was filed, the Ninth Circuit erred in counting him as a member of the majority. That practice effectively allowed a deceased judge to exercise the judicial power of the United States after his death. But federal judges are appointed for life, not for eternity.  We therefore grant the petition for certiorari, vacate the
judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and remand the case for further proceedings consistent with this opinion")

Note: There is no need to read the rest. United States Supreme Court uses "per curiam" (Latin, literally: by the court) to mean it decides a case without a hearing -- a rare occurrence.