Head v. New Mexico Board of Examiners in Optometry
374 U.S. 424 · Decided June 17, 1963 · 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
Head v. New Mexico Board of Examiners in Optometry was decided on June 17, 1963 unanimously (9–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Potter Stewart wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “National supremacy, miscellaneous” in the Federalism area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 374 U.S. 424 · 83 S. Ct. 1759 · 10 L. Ed. 2d 983 · 1963 U.S. LEXIS 977
- Docket number
- 392
- Decided
- June 17, 1963
- Argued
- April 15, 1963
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Potter Stewart
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- National supremacy, miscellaneous
- Issue area
- Federalism
- Legal provision
- Article I, Section 8, Paragraph 3 (interstate commerce clause)
- Type of law
- Constitution
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Arthur J. Goldberg | Majority |
Full case caption
Head, Doing Business as Lea County Publishing Co., et al. v. New Mexico Board of Examiners in Optometry
SCDB identifiers: case 1962-151, docket 1962-151-01.
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Same Term, same area (Federalism)
- Ex Parte George
- Smith v. Evening News AssociationAltered precedent
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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