Roper v. United States
368 U.S. 20 · Decided November 6, 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
Roper v. United States was decided on November 6, 1961 by a vote of 6–3. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Tom C. Clark wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Governmental liability” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 368 U.S. 20 · 82 S. Ct. 5 · 7 L. Ed. 2d 1 · 1961 U.S. LEXIS 1950
- Docket number
- 16
- Decided
- November 6, 1961
- Argued
- October 12, 1961
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Tom C. Clark
- Opinion assigned by
- Felix Frankfurter
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Governmental liability
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Dissent | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | 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
Roper v. United States et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1961-001, docket 1961-001-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- United States v. Neustadt et Ux.
- Morales v. City of Galveston
- Weyerhaeuser Steamship Co. v. United States
- United States v. Muniz
- West v. United States
- United States v. Isthmian Steamship Co.
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Martin v. Walton
- Still v. Norfolk & Western Railway Co.
- Interstate Commerce Commission v. J-T Transport Co., Inc.
- Federal Trade Commission v. Henry Broch & Co.
- United States v. Drum
- Blau v. Lehman
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