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Glona v. American Guarantee & Liability Insurance Co.

391 U.S. 73 · 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

Glona v. American Guarantee & Liability Insurance Co. was decided on May 20, 1968 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice William O. Douglas wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Rights of illegitimates” in the Civil Rights area. SCDB records that the Court declared a state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision unconstitutional.

Read the opinion

Case details

Citations
391 U.S. 73 · 88 S. Ct. 1515 · 20 L. Ed. 2d 441 · 1968 U.S. LEXIS 2915
Docket number
639
Decided
May 20, 1968
Argued
March 27, 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
6–3
Majority opinion
William O. Douglas
Opinion assigned by
Earl Warren
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Issue area
Civil Rights
Legal provision
Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
Type of law
Constitutional amendment
Held unconstitutional
A state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision
Decision direction (SCDB)
Liberal what this means

How the Justices voted

Full case caption

Glona v. American Guarantee & Liability Insurance Co. et al.

SCDB identifiers: case 1967-118, docket 1967-118-01.

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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