4 canonical passages across 4 cases, quoted by 41 opinions in total. These passages cluster together because the same opinions keep quoting them side by side — they state parts of one doctrine. The anchor passage is from James Armando Card v. Richard L. Dugger.
| # | Case | Flag | Canonical passage | Citers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James Armando Card v. Richard L. Dugger Anchor | green | “counsel cannot be labeled ineffective for failing to raise issues which have no merit.” | 19 |
| 2 | United States v. Nigel Winfield, Nigel Winfield v. United States of America, Nigel Winfield v. United States | green | “lawyer's failure to preserve a meritless issue plainly cannot prejudice a client.” | 9 |
| 3 | Hernandez v. United States | green | “to establish that he is entitled to an evidentiary hearing, hernandez had to allege facts that would prove that his counsel performed deficiently and that he was prejudiced by his counsel's deficient performance.” | 8 |
| 4 | Marcus Rivers v. United States | green | “e note that rivers bears the burden to prove the claims in his 2255 motion.” | 5 |
A red or yellow flag on a member means the underlying case has negative treatment — for those, check the case page before relying on the passage.