De Sylva v. Ballentine
351 U.S. 570 · Decided June 11, 1956 · 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
De Sylva v. Ballentine was decided on June 11, 1956 unanimously (9–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice John M. Harlan II wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Copyrights” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 351 U.S. 570 · 76 S. Ct. 974 · 100 L. Ed. 2d 1415 · 1956 U.S. LEXIS 1803
- Docket number
- 529
- Decided
- June 11, 1956
- Argued
- April 25, 1956
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- John M. Harlan II
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Copyrights
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- 17 U.S.C. § 1
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
De Sylva v. Ballentine, Guardian
SCDB identifiers: case 1955-103, docket 1955-103-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Copyrights”
- Columbia Broadcasting System, Inc. v. Loew's Inc.
- Mazer v. Stein
- F. W. Woolworth Co. v. Contemporary Arts, Inc.
- Miller Music Corp. v. Charles N. Daniels, Inc.
- Public Affairs Associates, Inc. v. Rickover
- Fortnightly Corp. v. United Artists Television, Inc.
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Williams v. United States.
- Liquid Carbonic Corp. v. United States
- Indian Towing Co., Inc. v. United States
- Neese v. Southern Railway Co.
- Bernhardt v. Polygraphic Company of America, Inc.
- Ryan Stevedoring Co., Inc. v. Pan-Atlantic Steamship 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