Clark v. Jeter

486 U.S. 456 · Decided June 6, 1988 · Supreme Court of the United States

At a glance

Clark v. Jeter was decided on June 6, 1988 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Rights of illegitimates” in the Civil Rights area. SCDB records that the Court declared a state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision unconstitutional.

Read the opinion

• CourtListener (Free Law Project) — opinion text
• Library of Congress — official U.S. Reports scan

Case details

How the Justices voted

Full case caption

Clark v. Jeter

SCDB identifiers: case 1987-104, docket 1987-104-01.

Related decisions

Other cases on “Rights of illegitimates”

• Reed v. Campbell
  476 U.S. 852Decided June 11, 19869–0John Paul Stevens
• Pickett v. BrownLaw held unconstitutional
  462 U.S. 1Decided June 6, 19839–0William J. Brennan Jr.
• Mills v. HabluetzelLaw held unconstitutional
  456 U.S. 91Decided April 5, 19829–0William H. Rehnquist
• United States v. Clark
  445 U.S. 23Decided February 26, 19807–2Thurgood Marshall
• Califano v. Boles
  443 U.S. 282Decided June 27, 19795–4William H. Rehnquist
• Lalli v. Lalli
  439 U.S. 259Decided December 11, 19785–4Lewis F. Powell Jr.

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Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)

• Bankers Life & Casualty Co. v. Crenshaw
  486 U.S. 71Decided May 16, 19886–1Thurgood Marshall
• Penson v. Ohio
  488 U.S. 75Decided November 29, 19888–1John Paul Stevens
• Allegheny Pittsburgh Coal Co. v. County Commission of Webster CountyLaw held unconstitutional
  488 U.S. 336Decided January 18, 19899–0William H. Rehnquist
• City of Richmond v. J. A. Croson CompanyLaw held unconstitutional
  488 U.S. 469Decided January 23, 19896–3Sandra Day O'Connor
• Board of Estimate of City of New York v. MorrisLaw held unconstitutional
  489 U.S. 688Decided March 22, 19899–0Byron R. White
• Quinn v. MillsapLaw held unconstitutional
  491 U.S. 95Decided June 15, 19899–0Harry A. Blackmun

Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)

• Ronald W. Reagan v. James Abourezk
  484 U.S. 1Decided October 19, 19873–3
• Langley et Ux. v. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
  484 U.S. 86Decided December 1, 19878–0Antonin Scalia
• Forrester v. White
  484 U.S. 219Decided January 12, 19888–0Sandra Day O'Connor
• Honig v. Doe
  484 U.S. 305Decided January 20, 19886–2William J. Brennan Jr.
• Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Assibi Abudu
  485 U.S. 94Decided March 1, 19888–0John Paul Stevens
• City of St. Louis v. James H. Praprotnik
  485 U.S. 112Decided March 2, 19887–1Sandra Day O'Connor

See all

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