A written Supreme Court opinion that, in the absence of a majority opinion, represents the reasoning of most of the justices who side with the winning party is a

a. plurality opinion.
b. concurring opinion.
c. leading opinion.
d. prevailing opinion.
e. per curiam.

I am confused between a and e

In the context of a Supreme Court opinion, let me explain the difference between a "plurality opinion" and a "per curiam" opinion to help you understand the correct answer.

A plurality opinion refers to a situation where no single opinion receives majority support from the justices, but one opinion receives more support than any other. It represents the reasoning of most of the justices who voted in favor of the winning party, but it does not have the support of a majority of the Court.

On the other hand, a per curiam opinion is a unanimous or near-unanimous decision of the court, typically a shorter and less detailed opinion. It is often used for routine or uncontroversial cases and is usually issued "by the court" without attribution to any specific justice.

Based on this explanation, the correct answer to your question is:

a. Plurality opinion.