Chiarella v. United States
445 U.S. 222 · Decided March 18, 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
Chiarella v. United States was decided on March 18, 1980 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Statutory construction of criminal laws, financial crimes” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 445 U.S. 222 · 100 S. Ct. 1108 · 63 L. Ed. 2d 348 · 1980 U.S. LEXIS 88
- Docket number
- 78-1202
- Decided
- March 18, 1980
- Argued
- November 5, 1979
- 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
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Lewis F. Powell Jr.
- Opinion assigned by
- William J. Brennan Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Securities Act of 1933, Securities Exchange Act of 1934, or Williams Act
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Chiarella v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1979-053, docket 1979-053-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Statutory construction of criminal laws, financial crimes”
- McElroy v. United States
- Williams v. United States
- Bell v. United States
- H. J. Inc. v. Northwestern Bell Telephone Co.
- United States v. Cook
- United States v. Braverman
Cases on the same legal provision: Securities Act of 1933, Securities Exchange Act of 1934, or Williams Act
- Aaron v. Securities and Exchange Commission
- Leroy v. Great Western United Corp.
- Touche Ross & Co. v. Redington
- United States v. Naftalin
- Rubin v. United States
- International Brotherhood of Teamsters v. Daniel
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