Conflict with Supreme Court Precedent and the Granting of Plenary Review

This paper presents preliminary findings from a study designed to fill a gap in political scientists' knowledge about the extent to which the Supreme Court grants or denies plenary review when conflict with one or more of its precedents is claimed. The findings are that the presence of conflict promoted the granting of review between 1961 and 1976, including the Warren Court terms (1961-68), even in the face of controls for litigant status, civil liberty issues, and constitutional issues, but that it was a poorer predictor during the Burger Court terms (1969-76).