Minnick v. California Department of Corrections
452 U.S. 105 · Decided June 1, 1981 · 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
Minnick v. California Department of Corrections was decided on June 1, 1981 by a vote of 8–1. SCDB codes the disposition as “petition denied or appeal dismissed.” Justice John Paul Stevens wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Affirmative action” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 452 U.S. 105 · 101 S. Ct. 2211 · 68 L. Ed. 2d 706 · 1981 U.S. LEXIS 109
- Docket number
- 79-1213
- Decided
- June 1, 1981
- Argued
- December 2, 1980
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Petition denied or appeal dismissed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–1
- Majority opinion
- John Paul Stevens
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Affirmative action
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Minnick et al. v. California Department of Corrections et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1980-105, docket 1980-105-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Affirmative action”
- Weinberger v. Rossi
- Fullilove v. Klutznick
- United Steelworkers of America v. Weber
- Southeastern Community College v. Davis
- Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
- Firefighters Local Union No. 1784 v. Stotts
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Dennis v. Sparks
- Allen v. McCurry
- United States Railroad Retirement Board v. Fritz
- Delaware State College v. Ricks
- Fedorenko v. United States
- Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Associated Dry Goods Corp.
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