CaseTrail

Hilton v. Sullivan

334 U.S. 323 · Decided June 1, 1948 · 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

Hilton v. Sullivan was decided on June 1, 1948 unanimously (9–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Hugo L. Black wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Military, veterans” in the Civil Rights area.

Read the opinion

Case details

Citations
334 U.S. 323 · 68 S. Ct. 1020 · 92 L. Ed. 2d 1416 · 1948 U.S. LEXIS 2707
Docket number
560
Decided
June 1, 1948
Argued
April 21, 1948
Court era
Vinson 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
Hugo L. Black
Opinion assigned by
Fred M. Vinson
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Issue (SCDB)
Military, veterans
Issue area
Civil Rights
Legal provision
Selective Service statutes
Type of law
Federal statute
Decision direction (SCDB)
Liberal what this means

How the Justices voted

JusticeVoteSeparate writing
Justice Hugo L. BlackMajorityWrote an opinion
Justice Stanley F. ReedSpecial concurrenceWrote an opinion
Justice Felix FrankfurterSpecial concurrence
Justice William O. DouglasMajority
Justice Frank MurphyMajority
Justice Robert H. JacksonSpecial concurrence
Justice Wiley B. RutledgeSpecial concurrenceWrote an opinion
Justice Harold H. BurtonMajority
Chief Justice Fred M. VinsonMajority

Full case caption

Hilton v. Sullivan, Secretary of the Navy, et al.

SCDB identifiers: case 1947-088, docket 1947-088-01.

Other cases on “Military, veterans”

See all

Cases on the same legal provision: Selective Service statutes

Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)

See all

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