Relying on primary documents and in-depth qualitative interviews of key people involved in the Rose v. Council for Better Education lawsuit, we tell a more nuanced and detailed story of this landmark case. Rose is credited with ushering in the third wave of school finance litigation (Thro, 1993) and shifting the legal focus from equity to a combination of adequacy and equity (Kiracofe & Weiler, 2021). Given that Rose is about to turn 40 years old, capturing the details of this case is essential for preservation purposes, to inform rising school funding litigants, and build upon the collective understanding of school finance scholars.