Lockhart v. United States
577 U.S. 347 · Decided March 1, 2016 · 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
Lockhart v. United States was decided on March 1, 2016 by a vote of 6–2. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Obscenity, federal” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 577 U.S. 347 · 136 S. Ct. 958 · 194 L. Ed. 2d 48 · 2016 U.S. LEXIS 1611
- Docket number
- 14-8358
- Decided
- March 1, 2016
- Argued
- November 3, 2015
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–2
- Majority opinion
- Sonia Sotomayor
- Opinion assigned by
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Obscenity, federal
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- 18 USC 2252
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Elena Kagan | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Lockhart v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 2015-012, docket 2015-012-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Obscenity, federal”
- United States v. Michael Williams
- John D. Ashcroft v. American Civil Liberties Union
- United States v. American Library Association, Inc.
- John Ashcroft v. American Civil Liberties Union
- John D. Ashcroft v. the Free Speech CoalitionLaw held unconstitutional
- Janet Reno v. American Civil Liberties UnionLaw held unconstitutional
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
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