Duncan v. Louisiana
391 U.S. 145 · Decided May 20, 1968 · 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
Duncan v. Louisiana was decided on May 20, 1968 by a vote of 7–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Byron R. White wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Jury trial right” in the Criminal Procedure area. SCDB codes this decision as formally altering one or more of the Court's own precedents.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 391 U.S. 145 · 88 S. Ct. 1444 · 20 L. Ed. 2d 491 · 1968 U.S. LEXIS 1631
- Docket number
- 410
- Decided
- May 20, 1968
- Argued
- January 17, 1968
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–2
- Majority opinion
- Byron R. White
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- Jury trial right
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Sixth Amendment (right to trial by jury)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Altered precedent
- Yes — formally altered the Court's precedent
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Concurrence | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Abe Fortas | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority |
Full case caption
Duncan v. Louisiana
SCDB identifiers: case 1967-122, docket 1967-122-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Jury trial right”
- Dyke v. Taylor Implement Manufacturing Co., Inc.
- International Terminal Operating Co., Inc. v. Nv Nederl. Amerik Stoomv Maats
- Ross v. Bernhard
- United States v. Reynolds et Ux.
- Baldwin v. New YorkLaw held unconstitutional
- Dunn v. Louisiana
Cases on the same legal provision: Sixth Amendment (right to trial by jury)
- Bloom v. Illinois
- Destefano v. Woods
- Cheff v. Schnackenberg, U.S. Circuit Judge
- McKeiver v. Pennsylvania
- Turner v. Louisiana
- Codispoti v. Pennsylvania
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Bitter v. United States
- Roberts v. United States
- Wood v. United States
- Pinto v. Pierce
- Beecher v. Alabama
- Garner v. Yeager
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