About Opinions and MOJs
Opinions
The court publishes opinions in cases to provide guidance to both the litigants and the trial court or agency, and the public. Published opinions may create new law, or interpret ambiguous statutes, clarify certain rules or concepts, or otherwise be of general interest. These decisions are published in print and on the DCCA website. They are binding precedent, which means they can be cited as supporting authority in other cases.
MOJs
The court issues Memorandum Opinion and Judgments (MOJs) in cases where the decision applies established legal principles. The decisions are issued by the panel (per curiam), not under the name of an individual judge. They are not published, and except as permitted by DC App. R. 28(g), they may not be cited as supporting authority in other cases. For that reason, the court only lists online the names and case numbers of MOJs that have been issued. If a party or other interested person believes that a specific MOJ should be published, the party or interested person may file a motion to publish no later than 30 days after the MOJ issues.