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John J. Hurley and South Boston Allied War Veterans Council v. Irish-American Gay

515 U.S. 557 · Decided June 19, 1995 · 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

John J. Hurley and South Boston Allied War Veterans Council v. Irish-American Gay was decided on June 19, 1995 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice David H. Souter wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Protest demonstrations” in the First Amendment area. SCDB records that the Court declared a state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision unconstitutional.

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Case details

Citations
515 U.S. 557 · 115 S. Ct. 2338 · 132 L. Ed. 2d 487 · 1995 U.S. LEXIS 4050
Docket number
94-749
Decided
June 19, 1995
Argued
April 25, 1995
Decision type
Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
Disposition
Reversed and remanded
Outcome for petitioner
The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
Vote
9–0 (unanimous)
Majority opinion
David H. Souter
Opinion assigned by
William H. Rehnquist
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Issue area
First Amendment
Legal provision
First Amendment (speech, press, and assembly)
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

John J. Hurley and South Boston Allied War Veterans Council v. Irish-American Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Group of Boston, Etc., et al.

SCDB identifiers: case 1994-083, docket 1994-083-01.

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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