Ball v. James
451 U.S. 355 · Decided April 29, 1981 · 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
Ball v. James was decided on April 29, 1981 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Potter Stewart wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Reapportionment (other than Voting Rights Act plans)” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 451 U.S. 355 · 101 S. Ct. 1811 · 68 L. Ed. 2d 150 · 1981 U.S. LEXIS 23
- Docket number
- 79-1740
- Decided
- April 29, 1981
- Argued
- February 23, 1981
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Potter Stewart
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority |
Full case caption
Ball et al. v. James et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1980-080, docket 1980-080-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Reapportionment (other than Voting Rights Act plans)”
- Upham v. Seamon
- Connor v. Coleman
- Connor v. Coleman
- Karcher v. DaggettLaw held unconstitutional
- Brown v. Thomson
- Wise v. Lipscomb
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
- Kirchberg v. FeenstraLaw held unconstitutional
- Michael M. v. Superior Court of Sonoma County (California
- Minnesota v. Clover Leaf Creamery Co.
- Cabell v. Chavez-Salido
- G.D. Searle & Co. v. Cohn
- Williams v. Zbaraz
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Dennis v. Sparks
- Allen v. McCurry
- United States Railroad Retirement Board v. Fritz
- Delaware State College v. Ricks
- Fedorenko v. United States
- Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Associated Dry Goods Corp.
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