# 2009 term United States Supreme Court opinions of Samuel Alito

* The 2009 term of the Supreme Court of the United States began October 5, 2009, and concluded October 4, 2010. This was the fifth term of Associate Justice Samuel Alito's tenure on the Court.
* Samuel Alito 2009 term statistics
* 8
* Majority or Plurality
* 10
* Concurrence
* 0
* Other
* 8
* Dissent
* 0
* Concurrence/dissent
* Total =
* 26
* Bench opinions = 25
* Opinions relating to orders = 1
* In-chambers opinions = 0
* Unanimous opinions: 2
* Most joined by: Roberts (10)
* Least joined by: Stevens, Sotomayor (4)
| Type | Case | Citation | Issues | Joined by | Other opinions |
| 201 | Bobby v. Van Hook | 558 U.S. 4 (2009) | Sixth Amendment • ineffective assistance of counsel | | per curiam |
| Alito joined the Court's per curiam opinion, which had reversed the lower court for resolving an ineffective assistance of counsel claim by applying guidelines published by the American Bar Association nearly twenty years after the trial. Alito filed a separate concurrence to emphasize his understanding that the Supreme Court's opinion "in no way suggests that the [ABA Guidelines] have special relevance in determining whether an attorney’s performance meets the standard required by the Sixth Amendment." Pointing out that the ABA "is a private group with limited membership," Alito observed that its views are not necessarily reflective of American lawyers as a whole. It is instead the responsibility of the courts to determine what conduct by an attorney meets constitutional standards, and Alito saw "no reason why the ABA Guidelines should be given a privileged position in making that determination." ||||||
| 402 | Wellons v. Hall | 558 U.S. 220 (2010) | habeas corpus • procedural default • GVR orders | Roberts | per curiam Scalia |
| 203 | Kucana v. Holder | 558 U.S. 233 (2010) | Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 • ban on judicial review of discretionary actions by Attorney General | | Ginsburg |
| 104 | South Carolina v. North Carolina | 558 U.S. 256 (2010) | state apportionment of the Catawba River waters • intervention by municipal entity in original action | Stevens, Scalia, Kennedy, Breyer | Roberts |
| 405 | Johnson v. United States | 559 U.S. 133 (2010) | Armed Career Criminal Act • state battery conviction as predicate violent felony | Thomas | Scalia |
| 106 | Mac's Shell Service, Inc. v. Shell Oil Products Co. | 559 U.S. 175 (2010) | Petroleum Marketing Practices Act • constructive termination | Unanimous | |
| 407 | Bloate v. United States | 559 U.S. 196 (2010) | Speedy Trial Act • exclusion of time granted to prepare pretrial motions | Breyer | Thomas Ginsburg |
| 108 | Jones v. Harris Associates | 559 U.S. 335 (2010) | Investment Company Act of 1940 • investment advisor compensation as breach of fiduciary duty | Unanimous | Thomas |
| 209 | Padilla v. Kentucky | 559 U.S. 356 (2010) | Sixth Amendment • ineffective assistance of counsel • legal advice on deportation as consequence of conviction | Roberts | Stevens Scalia |
| 410 | United States v. Stevens | 559 U.S. 460 (2010) | criminalization of depictions of animal cruelty • First Amendment • free speech | | Roberts |
| 111 | Perdue v. Kenny A. | 559 U.S. 542 (2010) | Civil Rights Attorney's Fees Award Act of 1976 • calculation of attorney's fees | Roberts, Scalia, Kennedy, Thomas | Kennedy Thomas Breyer |
| 112 | Stolt-Nielsen S. A. v. AnimalFeeds Int'l Corp. | 559 U.S. 662 (2010) | Federal Arbitration Act • class arbitration | Roberts, Scalia, Kennedy, Thomas | Ginsburg |
| 213 | Salazar v. Buono | 559 U.S. 700 (2010) | Article III • standing • First Amendment • Establishment Clause • display of religious symbol on government land • land transfer from government to private owner | | Kennedy Roberts Scalia Stevens Breyer |
| 414 | Nurre v. Whitehead | 559 U.S. 1025 (2010) | First Amendment • free speech • student speech in public schools • public forum doctrine | | |
| Alito dissented from the Court's denial of certiorari. ||||||
| 415 | Graham v. Florida | 560 U.S. 48 (2010) | Eighth Amendment • cruel and unusual punishment • sentencing of juveniles to life imprisonment for nonhomicide crimes | | Kennedy Roberts Stevens Thomas |
| 216 | United States v. Comstock | 560 U.S. 126 (2010) | Necessary and Proper Clause • civil commitment of mentally ill, sexually dangerous prisoners | | Breyer Kennedy Thomas |
| 217 | Samantar v. Yousuf | 560 U.S. 305 (2010) | Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act • immunity for officials of foreign states | | Stevens Scalia Thomas |
| 218 | Levin v. Commerce Energy, Inc. | 560 U.S. 413 (2010) | discriminatory state taxation • comity | | Ginsburg Kennedy Thomas |
| 419 | Carr v. United States | 560 U.S. 438 (2010) | Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act • registration requirements for interstate travel • ex post facto application | Thomas, Ginsburg | Sotomayor Scalia |
| 120 | Hamilton v. Lanning | 560 U.S. 505 (2010) | bankruptcy law • Chapter 13 • Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 • calculation of debtor's projected disposal income | Roberts, Stevens, Kennedy, Thomas, Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor | Scalia |
| 221 | Holland v. Florida | 560 U.S. 631 (2010) | Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 • statute of limitations • equitable tolling | | Breyer Scalia |
| 122 | Monsanto Co. v. Geertson Seed Farms | 561 U.S. 139 (2010) | Plant Protection Act • deregulation of genetically modified plants • Article III • standing | Roberts, Scalia, Kennedy, Thomas, Ginsburg, Sotomayor | Stevens |
| 223 | Doe v. Reed | 561 U.S. 186 (2010) | public disclosure of referendum petitions • First Amendment • free speech | | Roberts Stevens Scalia Breyer Sotomayor Thomas |
| 224 | Skilling v. United States | 561 U.S. 358 (2010) | Enron scandal • Sixth Amendment • Article III • change of venue • juror prejudice from pretrial publicity • honest services fraud | | Ginsburg Scalia Sotomayor |
| 425 | Christian Legal Soc. Chapter of Univ. of Cal., Hastings College of Law v. Martinez | 561 U.S. 661 (2010) | nondiscrimination policy for university student organizations • First Amendment • free speech • public forum doctrine | Roberts, Scalia, Thomas | Ginsburg Stevens Kennedy |
| 126 | McDonald v. Chicago | 561 U.S. 742 (2010) | Second Amendment • Fourteenth Amendment • Incorporation Doctrine • gun control | Roberts, Scalia, Kennedy; Thomas (in part) | Scalia Thomas Stevens Breyer |