In law, a summary judgment, also referred to as judgment as a matter of law or summary disposition, is a judgment entered by a court for one party and against another party summarily, i.e., without a full trial. Summary judgments may be issued on the merits of an entire case, or on discrete issues in that case.

A summary judgment is a decision made by the court on the basis of evidence and statements presented in the documents and legal pleadings filed with the court, without a full trial.

Summary judgment: an accelerated judgment that does not require a trial and in which the court 's interpretation of the pleadings forms the basis of the judgment.

All opinions in a single case are published together and are prefaced by a syllabus prepared by the Reporter of Decisions that summarizes the Court’s decision. The Justice who authors the majority or principal opinion often will summarize the opinion from the bench during a Court session.