Maryland and Virginia Eldership of the Churches of God v. Church of God at Sharpsburg, Inc.
396 U.S. 367 · Decided January 19, 1970 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Maryland and Virginia Eldership of the Churches of God v. Church of God at Sharpsburg, Inc. was decided on January 19, 1970 unanimously (8–0). SCDB codes the disposition as “petition denied or appeal dismissed.” The decision was issued per curiam (an unsigned opinion of the Court). SCDB classifies its main issue as “No merits, no substantial federal question” in the Judicial Power area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 396 U.S. 367 · 90 S. Ct. 499 · 24 L. Ed. 2d 582 · 1970 U.S. LEXIS 3151
- Docket number
- 414
- Decided
- January 19, 1970
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Per curiam (no oral argument)
- Disposition
- Petition denied or appeal dismissed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–0 (unanimous)
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- No merits, no substantial federal question
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Concurrence | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Concurrence | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority |
Full case caption
Maryland and Virginia Eldership of the Churches of God et al. v. Church of God at Sharpsburg, Inc., et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1969-027, docket 1969-027-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “No merits, no substantial federal question”
- Mattiello v. Connecticut.
- Hackin v. Arizona
- Bohannan v. Arizona ex Rel. Smith
- Fairfax Family Fund, Inc. v. California
- Marder v. Massachusetts
- Pearson v. Dodd
Same Term, same area (Judicial Power)
- Conway v. California Adult Authority
- City of Chicago v. United States
- National Labor Relations Board v. J. H. Rutter-Rex Manufacturing Co., Inc.
- Goldstein v. Cox
- Shapiro v. Doe
- United States v. Cotton
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