Per Curiam

Latin, meaning "for the court." In appellate courts, often refers to an unsigned opinion.

Additional Sources

Answers.com

An opinion rendered by the whole court or a majority of it, rather than being attributed to an individual judge. Originally used for summary dispositions of cases, the per curiam has sometimes been the vehicle for major opinions, for example, Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969).

FindLaw

By the court as a whole rather than by a single justice and usu. without extended discussion.

Law.com Dictionary

adj. Latin for "by the court," defining a decision of an appeals court as a whole in which no judge is identified as the specif- ic author.

The Free (Legal) Dictionary

A phrase used to distinguish an opinion of the whole court from an opinion written by any one judge.

Sometimes per curiam signifies an opinion written by the chief justice or presiding judge; it can also refer to a brief oral announcement of the disposition of a case by the court that is unaccompanied by a written opinion.

Wikipedia

In law, a per curiam decision (or opinion or per curiam) is a ruling issued by an appellate court with multiple judges in which the decision rendered was made by the court (or at least, a majority of the court) acting as a whole, anonymously. In contrast to regular opinions, the decision does not list the individual judge responsible for authoring the decision.

Per curiam decisions are not the only type of decision that can reflect the opinion of the court. Other types of decisions can also reflect the opinion of the entire court, such as unanimous decisions, in which the opinion of the court is expressed with an author listed. The Latin term per curiam literally means "by the court."