Supreme Court Workload Backloaded as Justices Hear Fewer Cases

Much of the US Supreme Court workload is increasingly bunching up toward the end of the term due to fewer cases, puzzling petition timing, and a glut of separate opinions, creating a backlog that advocates say could be the new norm.

The justices have so far granted more than two dozen cases to be heard in their upcoming term, a handful short of the number needed to fill the court’s first three argument sittings in October, November, and December. For a court that’s hearing around 60 cases a term, that’s a significant share of the workload pushed back.

The slow ...