SCOTUS 'Spider-Man' Quotes: Justice Elena Kagan Drops A Fantastic Comic Reference In Supreme Court Opinion

You should always have a sense of humor, especially if you're a Supreme Court Justice. The job is difficult and thankless, which means looking at the bright side of things could ease some of that tension regarding a ruling which could change millions of lives. Justice Elena Kagan seems to understand that and her latest opinion has quickly gone viral. When you're ruling on a patent rights issue regarding Marvel, how can you not include a few "Spider-Man" references?

Kimble v. Marvel Enterprises likely flew under everyone's radar -- unless you follow the Supreme Court of the United States or just happen to like patent law. The case involved a patent for a "Spider-Man" toy. The inventor and patent-holder, Stephen Kimble, sold his string-spraying patent to Marvel for 3 percent royalty on future sales. Trouble is, Marvel doesn't have to pay royalties after the patent expires, based on a previous Supreme Court Ruling, according to SCOTUS Blog. Kimble's patent expired in 2010 and Marvel stopped paying, which led to this new suit.

The Supreme Court ruled in favor, 6-3, for Marvel and affirmed 1964's Brulotte v. Thys Co., but everyone's talking about Kagan's opinion. It starts off with a breezy intro, but then she adds a few "Spider-Man" references. "The parties set no end date for royalties, apparently contemplating that they would continue for as long as kids want to imitate Spider-Man (by doing whatever a spider can)," Kagan writes with a wink to the theme song of the 1960's animated "Spider-Man" show. There's also a reference to superpowers and webs, but no mention of swinging from building-to-building.

"What we can decide, we can undecide. But stare decisis teaches that we should exercise that authority sparingly. Cf. S. Lee and S. Ditko, Amazing Fantasy No. 15: “SpiderMan,” p. 13 (1962) (“[I]n this world, with great power there must also come—great responsibility”)," Kagan concludes. It should not surprise anyone that she's a comic book fan.

This isn't Kagan's first time going viral. She previously dropped a sly Dr. Seuss citation earlier this year.