The Supreme Court recently released its 2021 calendar of arguments, conferences, and holidays. (See here and, until 2022, at the link on the right.) One new calendar feature is the designation of 13 of the court’s 38 almost-weekly, almost-always-on-Wednesday conferences as “double conferences.”
A “double conference” occurs when, like last week, the court hasn’t conferenced the previous week. Typically, the court rules on more petitions — although not twice as many — at a double conference than at other conferences. (Compare here with here.)
One of the 2021 “double conferences” apparently will actually be a triple conference. The court’s April 14 conference will come after two no-calendar weeks; the Wednesdays of the two weeks are, first, a holiday and, second, falls during an oral argument week, when the court never conferences. To avoid an extra-large jam up on the 14th, the court might later schedule a conference for the Tuesday before the Wednesday holiday.
I had heard the term “double conference” used informally, but now it’s publicly a thing.