Doe v. McMillan
412 U.S. 306 · Decided May 29, 1973 · 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
Doe v. McMillan was decided on May 29, 1973 by a vote of 5–4. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision in part, reversed or vacated it in part, and remanded the case. Justice Byron R. White wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Governmental liability” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 412 U.S. 306 · 93 S. Ct. 2018 · 36 L. Ed. 2d 912 · 1973 U.S. LEXIS 64
- Docket number
- 71-6356
- Decided
- May 29, 1973
- Argued
- December 13, 1972
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed and reversed (or vacated) in part and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Byron R. White
- Opinion assigned by
- William O. Douglas
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Governmental liability
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Article I, Section 6, Paragraph 1 (speech or debate clause)
- Type of law
- Constitution
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Unspecifiable what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William O. Douglas | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Concurrence | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Concurrence | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Doe et al. v. McMillan et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1972-129, docket 1972-129-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- United States v. Mason
- Logue v. United States
- Scheuer v. Rhodes
- Laird v. Nelms
- Affiliated Ute Citizens of Utah v. United States
- United States v. Reliable Transfer Co., Inc.Altered precedent
Cases on the same legal provision: Article I, Section 6, Paragraph 1 (speech or debate clause)
- United States v. Brewster
- Gravel v. United States
- Eastland v. United States Servicemen's Fund
- Powell v. McCormack
- United States v. Helstoski
- Helstoski v. Meanor
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Gottschalk v. Benson
- Evco v. JonesLaw held unconstitutional
- Union Oil Co. of California v. the San Jacinto
- Executive Jet Aviation, Inc. v. City of Cleveland
- Heublein, Inc. v. South Carolina Tax Commission
- Ricci v. Chicago Mercantile Exchange
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