Officials serving in the imperial palace during the Western Han dynasty, many of whom held additional bureaucratic titles, are called Inner Court officials in the academic literature. They have been the subject of a substantial body of research. The present article endeavors to analyze the ways in which these officials participated in the imperial decision-making process, and discuss the division of functional responsibilities within that group from this perspective. The article establishes that officials holding titles of zhuli (諸吏) and Jishizhong (給事中), as well as those serving as zuoyoucao (左右曹), and Marshals of State (dasima 大司馬), the latter also called ling shangshushi (領尚書事), differed in the mode and stage at which they participated in the imperial decision-making process. After memorials to the emperor from the populace or state officials were collected by secretaries, the zuoyoucao could draw up recommendations before submitting them to the emperor and the ling shangshushi. In cases deemed difficult or sensitive (e.g. involving punishments of imperial chancellors), the emperor could convene the Inner Court officials to present recommendations or try cases and propose solutions before opening the issue up for discussion by the imperial court. The emperor would not personally attend these proceedings. During the reign of Emperor Xuan, the group of officials tasked with such deliberations included mainly generals and holders of the additional title zhuli. By the reigns of Emperors Cheng and Ai, this was expanded to include court academicians (boshi 博士) and counsellors (dafu 大夫) with titles of Jishizhong. Recommendations produced by this Inner Court council were by no means final; the emperor always had the option to discard them. He could also call a council of ministers or a general court assembly to discuss the matter further. It was also possible for the emperor to entrust the issue to a specific administrative organ for deliberation and resolution. Despite that, issues were often resolved based on recommendations from the Inner Court assemblies. The emperor sometimes used those bodies to steer the opinion of the court to achieve his political goals. No matter whether political affairs went through Inner Court deliberations or not, all decisions ultimately rested on the emperor and only with his approval could they be passed down in decrees for implementation. Moreover, the ling shangshushi assisted the emperor in day-to-day administrative decisions, giving them the highest amount of influence on imperial decision-making among all Inner Court officials. Officials holding titles of Palace Attendants (shizhong 侍中), who were permitted to enter private imperial quarters, could exert a private influence on the emperor’s decisions.