Cite as: 535 U. S. 162 (2002)
Syllabus
the Court declined to extend Holloway and held that, absent objection, a defendant must demonstrate that a conflict of interest actually affected the adequacy of his representation, 446 U. S., at 348-349. Finally, in Wood v. Georgia, 450 U. S. 261, the Court granted certiorari to consider an equal-protection violation, but then remanded for the trial court to determine whether a conflict of interest that the record strongly suggested actually existed, id., at 273. Pp. 166-170.
(b) This Court rejects petitioner's argument that the remand instruction in Wood, directing the trial court to grant a new hearing if it determined that "an actual conflict of interest existed," 450 U. S., at 273, established that where the trial judge neglects a duty to inquire into a potential conflict the defendant, to obtain reversal, need only show that his lawyer was subject to a conflict of interest, not that the conflict adversely affected counsel's performance. As used in the remand instruction, "an actual conflict of interest" meant precisely a conflict that affected counsel's performance—as opposed to a mere theoretical division of loyalties. It was shorthand for Sullivan's statement that "a defendant who shows that a conflict of interest actually affected the adequacy of his representation need not demonstrate prejudice in order to obtain relief," 446 U. S., at 349-350 (emphasis added). The notion that Wood created a new rule sub silentio is implausible. Moreover, petitioner's proposed rule of automatic reversal makes little policy sense. Thus, to void the conviction petitioner had to establish, at a minimum, that the conflict of interest adversely affected his counsel's performance. The Fourth Circuit having found no such effect, the denial of habeas relief must be affirmed. Pp. 170-174.
(c) The case was presented and argued on the assumption that (absent some exception for failure to inquire) Sullivan would be applicable to a conflict rooted in counsel's obligations to former clients. The Court does not rule upon the correctness of that assumption. Pp. 174-176.
240 F. 3d 348, affirmed.
Scalia, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Rehnquist, C. J., and O'Connor, Kennedy, and Thomas, JJ., joined. Kennedy, J., filed a concurring opinion, in which O'Connor, J., joined, post, p. 176. Stevens, J., post, p. 179, and Souter, J., post, p. 189, filed dissenting opinions. Breyer, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Ginsburg, J., joined, post, p. 209.
Robert J. Wagner, by appointment of the Court, 533 U. S. 927, argued the cause for petitioner. With him on the briefs were Robert E. Lee and Mark E. Olive.
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