S&e Contractors, Inc. v. United States
406 U.S. 1 · Decided April 24, 1972 · 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
S&e Contractors, Inc. v. United States was decided on April 24, 1972 by a vote of 5–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice William O. Douglas wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Judicial review of agency actions” in the Judicial Power area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 406 U.S. 1 · 92 S. Ct. 1411 · 31 L. Ed. 2d 658 · 1972 U.S. LEXIS 110
- Docket number
- 70-88
- Decided
- April 24, 1972
- Argued
- October 21, 1971
- Reargued
- March 20, 1972
- 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
- 5–3
- Majority opinion
- William O. Douglas
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Judicial review of agency actions
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Concurrence | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Concurrence | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Concurrence |
Did not participate: William H. Rehnquist.
Full case caption
S&e Contractors, Inc. v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1971-093, docket 1971-093-01.
Related decisions
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- United States v. Florida East Coast Railway Co.
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Same Term, same area (Judicial Power)
- Hicks v. Pleasure House, Inc.
- Slayton v. Smith
- North Carolina v. Rice
- Securities and Exchange Commission v. Medical Committee for Human Rights
- Diffenderfer v. Central Baptist Church of Miami
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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