Depending on the case, Supreme Court briefs may be very easy or very difficult to find. Briefs for recent, high profile cases can be easy to locate for free online. However, briefs for cases where certification is denied and low profile or older cases may be harder to find. In particular, in forma pauperis cases where certification is denied are transferred to the National Archives at the end of each term and are not easily available.
The following websites and libraries provide some additional options for locating Supreme Court briefs.
Oral Arguments
In January 2017 we contacted NARA to learn the extent of their holdings of oral argument transcripts. The archivist's response specifies them with some precision:
"The National Archives in Washington, DC, has custody of Record Group 267, Records of the United States Supreme Court, Printed Transcripts of Oral Arguments starting with the 1968 October Term and Tape Recordings of Oral Arguments starting with 1955 October.
"Sincerely,
"Robert Ellis
Archivist, Federal Judicial Records
Archives 1 - Reference Section Research Services
Washington, DC 20408
202-357-5381
Fax: 202-357-5937
robert.ellis@nara.gov"
As of January 2017, a good contact at the Supreme Court Library:
Kate Wilko
Research Librarian
Supreme Court of the U.S.
1 First St. NE
Washington, D.C. 20543
202-479-3177
202-479-3477 (fax)
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