Gillette v. United States
401 U.S. 437 · Decided March 8, 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
Gillette v. United States was decided on March 8, 1971 by a vote of 8–1. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Thurgood Marshall wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Conscientious objectors” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 401 U.S. 437 · 91 S. Ct. 828 · 28 L. Ed. 2d 168 · 1971 U.S. LEXIS 69
- Docket number
- 85
- Decided
- March 8, 1971
- Argued
- December 9, 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
- 8–1
- Majority opinion
- Thurgood Marshall
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Conscientious objectors
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- Selective Service statutes
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Special concurrence | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority |
Full case caption
Gillette v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1970-057, docket 1970-057-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Conscientious objectors”
- United States v. Weller
- Ehlert v. United States
- McGee v. United States
- Clay v. United States
- United States v. Sisson
- Welsh v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: Selective Service statutes
- Astrup v. Immigration and Naturalization Service
- Toussie v. United States
- Kolden v. Selective Service Local Board No. 4
- Breen v. Selective Service Local Board No. 16
- Gutknecht v. United States
- McKart v. United States
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
- Blount v. RizziLaw held unconstitutional
- Baird v. State Bar of Arizona
- In re Stolar
- Law Students Civil Rights Research Council, Inc. v. Wadmond
- United States v. Weller
- Monitor Patriot Co. v. Roy
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