> For AI agents: read the machine-readable documentation index at [https://corpuslaw.us/llms.txt](https://corpuslaw.us/llms.txt) or the single-file full reference at [https://corpuslaw.us/llms-full.txt](https://corpuslaw.us/llms-full.txt).

Case-law access map · checked November 7, 2026

# Rhode Island: where to read court opinions for free

Free and searchable from 1716 to today (CourtListener from 1828; Caselaw Access Project to 2019).

As we read the highest court's own website and the free indexes on November 7, 2026. CourtListener's years come from its public bulk files (snapshot of Sep 30, 2026). The table has each court and source.

Not legal advice. Check the court's own website before relying on any listing.

## Courts and sources

| Court | Level | Source | Years | Text search | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rhode Island Supreme Court | Highest court | [courts.ri.gov](https://www.courts.ri.gov/Courts/SupremeCourt/Pages/opinions-orders.aspx) | Start year not found | Not checked | Opened in our check. |
| Supreme Court of Rhode Island | Highest court | [CourtListener](https://www.courtlistener.com/) ([evidence](https://www.courtlistener.com/?q=&type=o&court=ri)) | 1828–2026 | Yes | Opened in our check. 24,316 opinions in CourtListener's public bulk files (snapshot of Sep 30, 2026); newest Sep 15, 2026; 3,674 with approximate dates. |
| Superior Court of Rhode Island | Appeals | [CourtListener](https://www.courtlistener.com/) ([evidence](https://www.courtlistener.com/?q=&type=o&court=risuperct)) | 1917–2011 | Yes | Opened in our check. CourtListener shows no automatic collection of new opinions from this court. 5,393 opinions in CourtListener's public bulk files (snapshot of Sep 30, 2026); newest Dec 9, 2011; 19 with approximate dates. |
| Rhode Island - all reported decisions in CAP reporters | Other | [Caselaw Access Project (Harvard)](https://case.law/) ([evidence](https://case.law/caselaw/)) | 1716–2019 | No | Opened in our check. |
| Rhode Island - state appellate and supreme courts (published opinions) | Other | [Google Scholar](https://scholar.google.com/) | from 1950 | Yes | Opened in our check. |
| Rhode Island Vice Admiralty Court | Other | [CourtListener](https://www.courtlistener.com/) ([evidence](https://www.courtlistener.com/?q=&type=o&court=riviceadmct)) | 1716–1752 | Yes | Listed by CourtListener as not in use. 240 opinions in CourtListener's public bulk files (snapshot of Sep 30, 2026); newest Dec 14, 1752; 59 with approximate dates. |

## Where else to look

- [CourtListener](https://www.courtlistener.com/): Lists 2 Rhode Island courts.
- [Caselaw Access Project (Harvard)](https://case.law/): Holds published opinions from 1716 to 2019.
- [Google Scholar](https://scholar.google.com/): Its help page says its case law covers state appellate and supreme courts since 1950.
- [courts.ri.gov](https://www.courts.ri.gov/Courts/SupremeCourt/Pages/opinions-orders.aspx): Official court website.
- [Justia](https://law.justia.com/cases/): Also publishes opinions; we did not check it state by state.

## Known gaps

- CourtListener's court record shows no automatic collection of new opinions from Superior Court of Rhode Island. Check the court's own website for recent ones.
- We could not confirm that opinion text can be searched on Rhode Island Supreme Court's website.
- We did not find the earliest year of Rhode Island Supreme Court's opinions on its own website.
- The Caselaw Access Project holds published opinions only through 2019.
- Our survey lists no free statewide source of trial-court opinions for this state.

## Search the law

Corpus doesn't hold opinions. It does search Rhode Island statutes: [Search Rhode Island statutes in Corpus](https://corpuslaw.us/search?state=RI)

Read by Corpus on November 7, 2026. All case-law pages: https://corpuslaw.us/case-law
Data: [Corpus Open (open source)](https://github.com/teakesdev/corpus-open). CourtListener bulk data (public domain), snapshot Sep 30, 2026.

Not legal advice. Check the court's own website before relying on any listing.