Johnson v. United States
576 U.S. 591 · Decided June 26, 2015 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Johnson v. United States was decided on June 26, 2015 by a vote of 8–1. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Due process, prisoners' and defendants' rights” in the Due Process area. SCDB codes this decision as formally altering one or more of the Court's own precedents. SCDB records that the Court declared an act of Congress unconstitutional.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 576 U.S. 591 · 135 S. Ct. 2551 · 192 L. Ed. 2d 569 · 2015 U.S. LEXIS 4251
- Docket number
- 13-7120
- Decided
- June 26, 2015
- Argued
- November 5, 2014
- Reargued
- April 20, 2015
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–1
- Majority opinion
- Antonin Scalia
- Opinion assigned by
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Due process, prisoners' and defendants' rights
- Issue area
- Due Process
- Legal provision
- Fifth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Altered precedent
- Yes — formally altered the Court's precedent
- Held unconstitutional
- An act of Congress
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Majority | |
| Justice Elena Kagan | Majority |
Full case caption
Johnson v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 2014-016, docket 2014-016-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Due process, prisoners' and defendants' rights”
- United States v. DavisLaw held unconstitutional
- Lombardo v. St. Louis
- Glossip v. Oklahoma
- Gutierrez v. Saenz
- Reginald A. Wilkinson v. Charles E. Austin
- Charles Thomas Sell v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: Fifth Amendment (due process)
- Kerry v. Din
- Welch v. United States
- Beckles v. United States
- Sessions v. DimayaLaw held unconstitutional
- Federal Communications Commission v. Fox Television Stations, Inc.
- John Robertson v. United States ex Rel. Wykenna Watson
Same Term, same area (Due Process)
- Horne v. Department of AgricultureLaw held unconstitutional
- Obergefell v. HodgesAltered precedentLaw held unconstitutional
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