Newsom v. Smyth
365 U.S. 604 · Decided March 27, 1961 · 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
Newsom v. Smyth was decided on March 27, 1961 by a vote of 6–3. 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
- 365 U.S. 604 · 81 S. Ct. 774 · 5 L. Ed. 2d 803 · 1961 U.S. LEXIS 1445
- Docket number
- 116
- Decided
- March 27, 1961
- Argued
- January 16, 1961
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Per curiam (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Petition denied or appeal dismissed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Opinion assigned by
- Felix Frankfurter
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- No merits, no substantial federal question
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Legal provision
- Writ improvidently granted
- Type of law
- Other
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Jurisdictional dissent | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Jurisdictional dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Jurisdictional dissent | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority |
Full case caption
Newsom v. Smyth, Superintendent, Virginia State Penitentiary
SCDB identifiers: case 1960-063, docket 1960-063-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “No merits, no substantial federal question”
- Benz v. New York State Thruway Authority
- United States v. Haley
- Ioannou v. New York
- Wetzel v. Ohio
- Ganger v. City of Miami.
- Marder v. Massachusetts
Cases on the same legal provision: Writ improvidently granted
- Bullock v. South Carolina
- Atchley v. California.
- Binks Manufacturing Co. v. Ransburg Electro-Coating Corp.
- Baldonado v. California
- Needelman v. United States
- Phillips v. New York
Same Term, same area (Judicial Power)
- Kimbrough v. United States
- United States v. Fruehauf
- Schnell v. Peter Eckrich & Sons, Inc.
- Bullock v. South Carolina
- Verret v. Oil Transport Co., Inc.
- Atchley v. California.
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