Barr v. Matteo
355 U.S. 171 · Decided December 9, 1957 · 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
Barr v. Matteo was decided on December 9, 1957 by a vote of 7–2. The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case. The decision was issued per curiam (an unsigned opinion of the Court). SCDB classifies its main issue as “Libel and defamation” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 355 U.S. 171 · 78 S. Ct. 204 · 2 L. Ed. 2d 179 · 1957 U.S. LEXIS 47
- Docket number
- 409
- Decided
- December 9, 1957
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Per curiam (no oral argument)
- Disposition
- Vacated and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–2
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Libel and defamation
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Special concurrence | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Jurisdictional dissent | |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Majority |
Full case caption
Barr v. Matteo et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1957-020, docket 1957-020-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Libel and defamation”
- Farmers Educational & Cooperative Union of America v. Wday, Inc.
- Beauharnais v. Illinois
- New York Times Co. v. SullivanLaw held unconstitutional
- Garrison v. LouisianaLaw held unconstitutional
- Henry v. Collins
- Rosenblatt v. Baer
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
- Rowoldt v. Perfetto
- Staub v. City of BaxleyLaw held unconstitutional
- Sacher v. United States
- Kent v. Dulles
- Dayton v. Dulles
- Beilan v. Board of Public Education
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