Elk Grove Unified School District and David W. Gordon v. Michael A. Newdow
542 U.S. 1 · Decided June 14, 2004 · 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
Elk Grove Unified School District and David W. Gordon v. Michael A. Newdow was decided on June 14, 2004 unanimously (8–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice John Paul Stevens wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Standing, personal injury” in the Judicial Power area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 542 U.S. 1 · 124 S. Ct. 2301 · 159 L. Ed. 2d 98 · 2004 U.S. LEXIS 4178
- Docket number
- 02-1624
- Decided
- June 14, 2004
- Argued
- March 24, 2004
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- John Paul Stevens
- Opinion assigned by
- John Paul Stevens
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Standing, personal injury
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority |
Full case caption
Elk Grove Unified School District and David W. Gordon, Superintendent v. Michael A. Newdow et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 2003-069, docket 2003-069-01.
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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