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Ross v. Moffitt

417 U.S. 600 · Decided June 17, 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

Ross v. Moffitt was decided on June 17, 1974 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. 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
417 U.S. 600 · 94 S. Ct. 2437 · 41 L. Ed. 2d 341 · 1974 U.S. LEXIS 76
Docket number
73-786
Decided
June 17, 1974
Argued
April 22, 1974
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
William H. Rehnquist
Opinion assigned by
Warren E. Burger
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Issue area
Civil Rights
Legal provision
Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
Type of law
Constitutional amendment
Decision direction (SCDB)
Conservative what this means

How the Justices voted

Full case caption

Ross et al. v. Moffitt

SCDB identifiers: case 1973-142, docket 1973-142-01.

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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