Pennsylvania v. Finley
481 U.S. 551 · Decided May 18, 1987 · 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
Pennsylvania v. Finley was decided on May 18, 1987 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Indigents, appointment of counsel” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 481 U.S. 551 · 107 S. Ct. 1990 · 95 L. Ed. 2d 539 · 1987 U.S. LEXIS 2058
- Docket number
- 85-2099
- Decided
- May 18, 1987
- Argued
- March 2, 1987
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- William H. Rehnquist
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Indigents, appointment of counsel
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
- 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 | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Jurisdictional dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority |
Full case caption
Pennsylvania v. Finley
SCDB identifiers: case 1986-091, docket 1986-091-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Indigents, appointment of counsel”
- Mallard v. United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa
- Murray v. Giarratano
- Anthony S. Austin v. United States
- George Smith v. Lee Robbins
- Ross v. Moffitt
- Dennett v. Hogan
Cases on the same legal provision: Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
- Burger v. Kemp
- Kuhlmann v. Wilson
- Wheat v. United States
- Satterwhite v. Texas
- McCoy v. Court of Appeals of Wisconsin
- Patterson v. Illinois
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Ansonia Board of Education v. Philbrook
- Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Hector
- Munro v. Socialist Workers Party
- Tashjian v. Republican Party of ConnecticutLaw held unconstitutional
- California Federal Savings & Loan Assn. v. Guerra
- City of Pleasant Grove 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