2005 term United States Supreme Court opinions of Sandra Day O'Connor

The 2005 term of the Supreme Court of the United States began October 3, 2005 and concluded October 1, 2006. This was the twenty-fifth and final term of Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's tenure on the Court ; O'Connor retired on January 31, 2006.
Sandra Day O'Connor 2005 term statistics 3 Majority or Plurality 0 Concurrence 0 Other 0 Dissent 0 Concurrence/dissent Total = 3 Bench opinions = 3 Opinions relating to orders = 0 In-chambers opinions = 0 Unanimous opinions: 2 Most joined by: Stevens, Scalia, Kennedy, Souter, Thomas (3) Least joined by: Roberts,[1] Ginsburg, Breyer (2)

Type	Case	Citation	Issues	Joined by	Other opinions
	Schaffer v. Weast	546 U.S. 49 (2005)	Individuals with Disabilities Education Act  • individualized education program challenges  • burden of proof	Stevens, Scalia, Kennedy, Souter, Thomas	Stevens Ginsburg Breyer
	Lockhart v. United States	546 U.S. 142 (2005)	Debt Collection Act of 1982  • Social Security  • student loan debt	Unanimous	Scalia
	Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood	546 U.S. 320 (2005)	abortion  • parental notification  • facial challenge	Unanimous
O'Connor's opinion for the Court vacated and remanded the First Circuit's judgment that New Hampshire's parental notification law was unconstitutional, but avoided a substantive ruling on the challenged law or a reconsideration of prior Supreme Court abortion precedent. Instead, the Court only addressed the issue of remedy, holding that invalidating a statute in its entirety "is not always necessary or justified, for lower courts may be able to render narrower declaratory and injunctive relief."

Notes

1. Roberts did not participate in one of the three cases in which O'Connor filed an opinion.

References

• 2005 Term Opinions of the Court, Supreme Court of the United States, retrieved July 7, 2010.
• 2005 Term Opinions Relating to Orders, Supreme Court of the United States, archived from the original on May 27, 2010, retrieved July 7, 2010.
• 2005 Term In-Chambers Opinions, Supreme Court of the United States, retrieved July 7, 2010.