Law · Facts & sources
5 sourced facts about lawsuits and court cases, each with the context behind the number. 4 more are in today's round and appear here after it closes.
Answer303,563
That's up 4% from the year before, even as the earplug litigation that had flooded federal dockets wound down.
Source: Chief Justice's 2025 Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary (2025) supremecourt.gov
Answer41,824
Appeals rose from 39,788 in FY 2024 but remained 14% below FY 2019, the last full year before the pandemic.
Source: Chief Justice's 2025 Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary (2025) supremecourt.gov
Answer46,426
Social Security, civil immigration and prisoner petition cases accounted for 79% of cases against the U.S. The government was plaintiff in just 3,166.
Source: Chief Justice's 2025 Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary (2025) supremecourt.gov
Answerabout half (20,878 appeals)
Prisoner petitions made up 20% of appeals, and 88% of those were filed without a lawyer.
Source: Chief Justice's 2025 Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary (2025) supremecourt.gov
Answer46,854
Civil rights filings grew 15% in a year. Together with prisoner petitions they made up 57% of federal question cases.
Source: Chief Justice's 2025 Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary (2025) supremecourt.gov