New Jersey v. T. L. O.
469 U.S. 325 · Decided January 15, 1985 · 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
New Jersey v. T. L. O. was decided on January 15, 1985 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Byron R. White wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Search and seizure (general)” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 469 U.S. 325 · 105 S. Ct. 733 · 83 L. Ed. 2d 720 · 1985 U.S. LEXIS 41
- Docket number
- 83-712
- Decided
- January 15, 1985
- Argued
- March 28, 1984
- Reargued
- October 2, 1984
- 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
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Byron R. White
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Search and seizure (general)
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Fourth Amendment
- 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 | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Concurrence |
Full case caption
New Jersey v. T. L. O.
SCDB identifiers: case 1984-022, docket 1984-022-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Search and seizure (general)”
- United States v. Hensley
- Thompson v. Louisiana
- Florida v. Rodriguez
- United States v. Sharpe
- Winston v. Lee
- Hayes v. Florida
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourth Amendment
- United States v. Johns
- California v. Carney
- Florida v. Meyers
- Lanier v. South Carolina
- New York v. Class
- Michigan v. LongAltered precedent
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Florida v. Rodriguez
- Thompson v. Louisiana
- Luce v. United States
- United States v. Abel
- United States v. Powell
- Garcia v. United States
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