Supreme Court of the United States · Official docket →
Dennis Spencer v. Colorado
Paid petition · Court of Appeals of Colorado, No. 2017CA2228 · judgment December 17, 2020
Before the decision, about 1.6× the 4.1% base rate. The model weighted this up for counsel who has won certiorari before and a circuit split argued in the petition, and down for a state or local-government respondent.
Question presented
In Cuyler v. Sullivan, 446 U.S. 335 (1980), this Court held that a defendant alleging ineffective assistance of counsel based on a lawyer’s conflict of interest need not demonstrate outcome-determinative prejudice to obtain relief. Instead, a defendant need only show that an “actual conflict of interest adversely affected his lawyer’s performance.” Id. at 350. The question presented is: Does Sullivan’s standard apply only when a defense lawyer represents multiple clients with conflicting interests (as eleven jurisdictions have held), or does Sullivan apply to other conflicts—such as personal conflicts of interest (as twenty-one jurisdictions have held)?
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Neal Kumar Katyal
Hogan Lovells US LLP
For respondent
Eric Reuel Olson
Solicitor General
Case
Subject area
Criminal Procedure (estimated from the questions presented, in the Supreme Court Database’s categories)
Conference history
Distributed for 2 conferences
Amicus briefs
2 merits
(2 supporting pet./neither)
Linked docket
21M78, 21A197
Order
Order list, May 16, 2022 · Certiorari denied
Proceedings
- May 16 2022Petition DENIED.
- Apr 26 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 5/12/2022.
- Apr 25 2022Reply of petitioner Dennis Spencer filed. (Distributed)
- Apr 11 2022Brief of respondent Colorado in opposition filed.
- Mar 24 2022Brief amicus curiae of Legal Ethics Scholars and Law Professors filed.
- Mar 24 2022Brief amici curiae of Due Process Institute, et al. filed.
- Mar 02 2022Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including April 11, 2022.
- Mar 01 2022Motion to extend the time to file a response from March 24, 2022 to April 11, 2022, submitted to The Clerk.
- Feb 22 2022Motion (21M78) for leave to file a petition for a writ of certiorari with the supplemental appendix under seal Granted.
- Feb 02 2022MOTION (21M78) DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 2/18/2022.
- Jan 26 2022Motion (21M78) for leave to file a petition for a writ of certiorari with the supplemental appendix under seal filed.
- Jan 26 2022Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due March 24, 2022)
- Dec 02 2021Application (21A197) granted by Justice Gorsuch extending the time to file until January 26, 2022.
- Nov 30 2021Application (21A197) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from December 26, 2021 to January 26, 2022, submitted to Justice Gorsuch.