Nichols v. United States
578 U.S. 104 · Decided April 4, 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
Nichols v. United States was decided on April 4, 2016 unanimously (8–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Statutory construction of criminal laws, miscellaneous” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 578 U.S. 104 · 136 S. Ct. 1113 · 194 L. Ed. 2d 324 · 2016 U.S. LEXIS 2276
- Docket number
- 15-5238
- Decided
- April 4, 2016
- Argued
- March 1, 2016
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Samuel A. Alito Jr.
- Opinion assigned by
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal 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 | Majority | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Majority | |
| Justice Elena Kagan | Majority |
Full case caption
Nichols v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 2015-046, docket 2015-046-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Statutory construction of criminal laws, miscellaneous”
- Elonis v. United States
- United States v. Apel
- Stokeling v. United States
- Quarles v. United States
- Shular v. United States
- Billy Joe Reynolds v. United States
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Maryland v. James Kulbicki
- Chadrin Lee Mullenix v. Beatrice Luna
- Randy White v. Roger L. Wheeler
- Hurst v. FloridaAltered precedentLaw held unconstitutional
- Kansas v. Carr
- Montgomery v. Louisiana
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