The opinions of the Supreme Court of the United States are published officially in a set of case books called the United States Reports. Prior to the issuance of (1) bound volumes of the U.S. Reports, the Court's official decisions appear in three temporary printed forms: (2) bench opinions (which are transmitted electronically to subscribers over the Court's Project Hermes service); (3) slip opinions (which are posted on this website); and (4) preliminary prints.
The bound volumes of the United States Reports contain the fourth and final generation of the Court's opinions. Only the printed bound volumes of the United States Reports contain the final, official opinions of the Supreme Court of the United States. In case of discrepancies between a bound volume and other iterations of opinion--or any other version of the same materials, whether print or electronic, official or unofficial--the printed bound volume controls. *
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