Rule of Four

The Rule of Four is the Supreme Court’s practice of granting a petition for a writ of certiorari when at least four justices vote to hear the case. It allows a minority of the Court to secure review even when fewer than five justices initially favor taking a case. The rule governs whether the Court hears a case, not how it ultimately decides the merits.

Example: The Supreme Court granted review in Brown v. Board of Education, which it decided in 1954. As with other grants of certiorari, the Rule of Four governed whether the Court would hear the case, although the public case record does not disclose each justice’s vote on the petition.

Common misconception: Four votes are enough to win a case at the Supreme Court. The rule concerns accepting a case for review; deciding the merits generally requires a majority of participating justices.

Sources: https://www.supremecourt.gov/visiting/activities/pdf/AboutTheCourtBooklet_February2026.pdf; https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/USReports/USREPORTS-361_PDFA.pdf