In re Murchison
349 U.S. 133 · Decided May 16, 1955 · 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
In re Murchison was decided on May 16, 1955 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Hugo L. Black wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Due process, impartial decision maker” in the Due Process area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 349 U.S. 133 · 75 S. Ct. 623 · 99 L. Ed. 2d 942 · 1955 U.S. LEXIS 807
- Docket number
- 405
- Decided
- May 16, 1955
- Argued
- April 20, 1955
- 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
- Hugo L. Black
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Due process, impartial decision maker
- Issue area
- Due Process
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Dissent | Co-authored an opinion |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Dissent | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Dissent | Co-authored an opinion |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority |
Full case caption
In re Murchison et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1954-076, docket 1954-076-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Due process, impartial decision maker”
- Ward v. Village of MonroevilleLaw held unconstitutional
- Taylor v. Hayes
- Withrow v. Larkin
- Hortonville Joint School District No. 1 v. Hortonville Education Assn.
- Connally v. GeorgiaLaw held unconstitutional
- Marshall v. Jerrico, Inc.
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Chessman v. Teets
- National Union of Marine Cooks and Stewards v. Arnold
- Reece v. Georgia
- Pennsylvania ex Rel. Herman v. Claudy
- International Harvester Credit Corp. v. Goodrich
- Leyra v. Denno
Same Term, same area (Due Process)
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