Avery v. Georgia
345 U.S. 559 · Decided May 25, 1953 · 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
Avery v. Georgia was decided on May 25, 1953 unanimously (8–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Desegregation (general)” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 345 U.S. 559 · 73 S. Ct. 891 · 97 L. Ed. 2d 1244 · 1953 U.S. LEXIS 2051
- Docket number
- 648
- Decided
- May 25, 1953
- Argued
- April 30, 1953
- Court era
- Vinson Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Fred M. Vinson
- Opinion assigned by
- Fred M. Vinson
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Desegregation (general)
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Majority |
Did not participate: Robert H. Jackson.
Full case caption
Avery v. Georgia
SCDB identifiers: case 1952-091, docket 1952-091-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Desegregation (general)”
- District of Columbia v. John R. Thompson Co., Inc.
- Barrows v. Jackson
- Hernandez v. Texas
- Rice v. Sioux City Memorial Park Cemetery, Inc.
- Williams v. Georgia
- Shepherd v. Florida
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
- Salsburg v. Maryland
- Brown v. Board of Education of TopekaAltered precedentLaw held unconstitutional
- Watson et Ux. v. Employers Liability Assurance Corporation, Ltd.
- Williamson v. Lee Optical of Oklahoma, Inc.
- Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
- Niemotko v. Maryland
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Mandoli v. Acheson
- Bailess v. Paukune
- Orloff v. Willoughby
- Ramspeck v. Federal Trial Examiners Conference
- Heikkila v. Barber
- Ford Motor Co. v. Huffman
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