Jones v. Barnes
463 U.S. 745 · Decided July 5, 1983 · 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
Jones v. Barnes was decided on July 5, 1983 by a vote of 7–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice Warren E. Burger wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Right to counsel” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 463 U.S. 745 · 103 S. Ct. 3308 · 77 L. Ed. 2d 987 · 1983 U.S. LEXIS 105
- Docket number
- 81-1794
- Decided
- July 5, 1983
- Argued
- February 22, 1983
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–2
- Majority opinion
- Warren E. Burger
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Right to counsel
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority |
Full case caption
Jones, Superintendent, Great Meadow Correctional Facility, et al. v. Barnes
SCDB identifiers: case 1982-155, docket 1982-155-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Right to counsel”
- Morris v. Slappy
- McKaskle v. Wiggins
- United States v. Cronic
- United States v. Gouveia
- Nix v. Williams
- Wainwright v. Torna
Cases on the same legal provision: Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
- Strickland v. Washington
- Pennsylvania v. Finley
- McCoy v. Court of Appeals of Wisconsin
- Holloway v. Arkansas
- Moore v. Illinois
- United States v. Ash
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Anderson v. Harless
- Wyrick v. Fields
- Pillsbury Co. v. Conboy
- Missouri v. Hunter
- Marshall v. Lonberger
- South Dakota v. Neville
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