Brown v. Louisiana
447 U.S. 323 · Decided June 16, 1980 · 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
Brown v. Louisiana was decided on June 16, 1980 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice William J. Brennan Jr. wrote the opinion announcing the judgment of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Retroactivity of new rights” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 447 U.S. 323 · 100 S. Ct. 2214 · 65 L. Ed. 2d 159 · 1980 U.S. LEXIS 113
- Docket number
- 79-5364
- Decided
- June 16, 1980
- Argued
- March 25, 1980
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Judgment of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- William J. Brennan Jr.
- Opinion assigned by
- William J. Brennan Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Retroactivity of new rights
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Retroactive application of a constitutional right
- Type of law
- Other
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Judgment of the Court | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Dissent | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence |
Full case caption
Brown v. Louisiana
SCDB identifiers: case 1979-117, docket 1979-117-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Retroactivity of new rights”
- Lee v. Missouri
- United States v. Johnson
- Hankerson v. North Carolina
- Solem v. Stumes
- Shea v. Louisiana
- Bowen v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: Retroactive application of a constitutional right
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Pilon v. Bordenkircher
- Perrin v. United States
- Ybarra v. Illinois
- Thompson v. United States
- United States v. Bailey
- Tague v. Louisiana
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