O'Shea v. Littleton
414 U.S. 488 · Decided January 15, 1974 · 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
O'Shea v. Littleton was decided on January 15, 1974 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 “Standing, personal injury” in the Judicial Power area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 414 U.S. 488 · 94 S. Ct. 669 · 38 L. Ed. 2d 674 · 1974 U.S. LEXIS 41
- Docket number
- 72-953
- Decided
- January 15, 1974
- Argued
- October 17, 1973
- 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)
- Standing, personal injury
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Legal provision
- Article III, Section 2, Paragraph 1 (case or controversy requirement)
- Type of law
- Constitution
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority |
Full case caption
O'Shea, Magistrate, Circuit Court of Alexander County, Illinois, et al. v. Littleton et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1973-037, docket 1973-037-01.
Related decisions
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Cases on the same legal provision: Article III, Section 2, Paragraph 1 (case or controversy requirement)
- Steffel v. Thompson
- Super Tire Engineering Co. v. McCorkle
- Defunis v. Odegaard
- Vermont v. New York
- Gilligan v. Morgan
- Goosby v. Osser
Same Term, same area (Judicial Power)
- Satiacum v. Washington
- Paschall v. Christie-Stewart, Inc.
- Chicago Mercantile Exchange v. Deaktor
- Foley v. Blair & Co., Inc.
- Zahn v. International Paper Co.
- Schmidt v. Lessard
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