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American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. v. Writers Guild of America

437 U.S. 411 · Decided June 21, 1978 · Supreme Court of the United States

Record summary. This page is generated from the Supreme Court Database’s coded data about the case. It describes who decided what, not the Court’s reasoning. Read the opinion itself before relying on it. Not legal advice.

At a glance

American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. v. Writers Guild of America was decided on June 21, 1978 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Byron R. White wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Union-union member disputes” in the Unions area.

Read the opinion

Case details

Citations
437 U.S. 411 · 98 S. Ct. 2423 · 57 L. Ed. 2d 313 · 1978 U.S. LEXIS 116
Docket number
76-1121
Decided
June 21, 1978
Argued
December 5, 1977
Reargued
March 20, 1978
Court era
Burger Court
Decision type
Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
Disposition
Reversed
Outcome for petitioner
The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
Vote
5–4
Majority opinion
Byron R. White
Opinion assigned by
Warren E. Burger
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Issue area
Unions
Legal provision
National Labor Relations Act
Type of law
Federal statute
Decision direction (SCDB)
Conservative what this means

How the Justices voted

Full case caption

American Broadcasting Companies, Inc., et al. v. Writers Guild of America, West, Inc., et al.

SCDB identifiers: case 1977-124, docket 1977-124-01.

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Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error