Donaldson v. United States
400 U.S. 517 · Decided January 25, 1971 · 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
Donaldson v. United States was decided on January 25, 1971 unanimously (9–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Harry A. Blackmun wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Federal taxation (Internal Revenue Code)” in the Federal Taxation area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 400 U.S. 517 · 91 S. Ct. 534 · 27 L. Ed. 2d 580 · 1971 U.S. LEXIS 147
- Docket number
- 65
- Decided
- January 25, 1971
- Argued
- November 19, 1970
- Court era
- Burger 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
- Harry A. Blackmun
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Federal taxation (Internal Revenue Code)
- Issue area
- Federal Taxation
- Legal provision
- Internal Revenue Code
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Donaldson, Fka Sweet v. United States et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1970-030, docket 1970-030-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Federal taxation (Internal Revenue Code)”
- United States v. Maryland Savings-Share Insurance Corp.
- United States v. Mitchell
- Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Lincoln Savings & Loan Assn.
- Nash v. United States
- Woodward v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
- United States v. Hilton Hotels Corp.
Cases on the same legal provision: Internal Revenue Code
- United States v. Estate of Donnelly
- United States v. Chandler
- United States v. Cartwright
- United States v. Bishop
- Fausner v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
- United States v. Habig
Same Term, same area (Federal Taxation)
- United States v. Maryland Savings-Share Insurance Corp.
- United States v. Randall
- United States v. Mitchell
- Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Lincoln Savings & Loan Assn.
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