Case-law access map · checked November 7, 2026
Washington: where to read court opinions for free
Free and searchable from 1854 to today (CourtListener from 1889; the court's own site from 2013; Caselaw Access Project to 2017).
Appeals courts: free and searchable from 1854 to today (CourtListener from 1966; the court's own site from 2012; Caselaw Access Project to 2017).
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
Each line is one court read from one source. Years are the span that source lists; “inferred” means taken from a description of the site, not from the site itself. A site that refused our automated check may still open in a browser.
| Court | Level | Source | Years | Text search | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington Supreme Court | Highest court | courts.wa.gov | from 2013 | Yes | Opened in our check |
| Washington Supreme Court | Highest court | CourtListener evidence | 1889–2026 | Yes | Opened in our check47,775 opinions in CourtListener's public bulk files (snapshot of Sep 30, 2026); newest Sep 17, 2026; 492 with approximate dates. |
| Court of Appeals of Washington | Appeals | CourtListener evidence | 1966–2026 | Yes | Opened in our check88,582 opinions in CourtListener's public bulk files (snapshot of Sep 30, 2026); newest Sep 29, 2026; 105 with approximate dates. |
| Washington Court of Appeals (Divisions I, II, III) | Appeals | courts.wa.gov | from 2012 | Yes | Opened in our check |
| Washington - all reported decisions in CAP reporters | Other | Caselaw Access Project (Harvard) evidence | 1854–2017 | No | Opened in our check |
| Washington - state appellate and supreme courts (published opinions) | Other | Google Scholar | from 1950 | Yes | Opened in our check |
| Washington Attorney General Reports | Other | CourtListener evidence | 1996–2011 | Yes | Opened in our checkCourtListener shows no automatic collection of new opinions from this court.166 opinions in CourtListener's public bulk files (snapshot of Sep 30, 2026); newest Sep 7, 2011. |
| Washington Territory | Other | CourtListener evidence | 1882–1888 | Yes | Opened in our checkCourtListener lists it as a historical court.296 opinions in CourtListener's public bulk files (snapshot of Sep 30, 2026); newest Aug 14, 1888; 199 with approximate dates. |
Where else to look
- CourtListener: Lists 3 Washington courts.
- Caselaw Access Project (Harvard): Holds published opinions from 1854 to 2017.
- Google Scholar: Its help page says its case law covers state appellate and supreme courts since 1950.
- courts.wa.gov: Official court website.
- Justia: Also publishes opinions; we did not check it state by state.
Known gaps
- The Caselaw Access Project holds published opinions only through 2017.
- Our survey lists no free statewide source of trial-court opinions for this state.
Corpus
Corpus holds the statutes, not the opinions
For the law itself, Corpus searches Washington statutes, and each result cites its section and links the source.
Data: Corpus Open (open source). CourtListener bulk data (public domain), snapshot Sep 30, 2026.
Read by Corpus on November 7, 2026. Sites change; check the court’s own website before relying on a line.
Not legal advice. Check the court's own website before relying on any listing. Corpus is not a law firm.