Flast v. Cohen
392 U.S. 83 · Decided June 10, 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
Flast v. Cohen was decided on June 10, 1968 by a vote of 8–1. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Standing, taxpayer suits” in the Judicial Power area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 392 U.S. 83 · 88 S. Ct. 1942 · 20 L. Ed. 2d 947 · 1968 U.S. LEXIS 1347
- Docket number
- 416
- Decided
- June 10, 1968
- Argued
- March 12, 1968
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–1
- Majority opinion
- Earl Warren
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- Standing, taxpayer suits
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Legal provision
- Article III, Section 2, Paragraph 1 (case or controversy requirement)
- Type of law
- Constitution
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Abe Fortas | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority |
Full case caption
Flast et al. v. Cohen, Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1967-159, docket 1967-159-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Standing, taxpayer suits”
- United States v. Richardson
- Schlesinger v. Reservists Committee to Stop the War
- Valley Forge Christian College v. Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Inc.
- Doremus v. Board of Education of the Borough of Hawthorne
- Daimlerchrysler Corporation v. Charlotte Cuno
- Jay F. Hein v. Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc.
Cases on the same legal provision: Article III, Section 2, Paragraph 1 (case or controversy requirement)
- Brockington v. Rhodes
- Hall et Ux. v. Beals
- Association of Data Processing Service Organizations, Inc. v. Camp
- Barlow v. Collins
- Sears v. Carpet
- United States v. Armour & Co.
Same Term, same area (Judicial Power)
- Bohannan v. Arizona ex Rel. Smith
- Umans v. United States
- Will, U.S. District Judge v. United States
- Hackin v. Arizona
- Federal Trade Commission v. Flotill Products, Inc.
- Zwickler v. Koota
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