Reynolds v. Cochran
365 U.S. 525 · Decided March 20, 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
Reynolds v. Cochran was decided on March 20, 1961 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Hugo L. Black wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Right to counsel” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 365 U.S. 525 · 81 S. Ct. 723 · 5 L. Ed. 2d 754 · 1961 U.S. LEXIS 1493
- Docket number
- 115
- Decided
- March 20, 1961
- Argued
- March 2, 1961
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Hugo L. Black
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Right to counsel
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority |
Full case caption
Reynolds v. Cochran, Director of Division of Corrections
SCDB identifiers: case 1960-059, docket 1960-059-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Right to counsel”
- Ferguson v. GeorgiaLaw held unconstitutional
- McNeal v. Culver
- Hamilton v. Alabama
- Hudson v. North Carolina
- Chewning v. Cunningham
- Carnley v. Cochran
Cases on the same legal provision: Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
- Entsminger v. Iowa
- McConnell v. Rhay
- Arsenault v. Massachusetts
- Kirby v. Illinois
- United States v. Ash
- Moore v. Illinois
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Scott v. California
- Reina v. United States
- Callanan v. United States
- Carbo v. United States
- Campbell v. United States
- McNeal v. Culver
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