Sanks v. Georgia
401 U.S. 144 · Decided February 23, 1971 · 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
Sanks v. Georgia was decided on February 23, 1971 unanimously (9–0). SCDB codes the disposition as “petition denied or appeal dismissed.” Justice John M. Harlan II wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Mootness” in the Judicial Power area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 401 U.S. 144 · 91 S. Ct. 593 · 27 L. Ed. 2d 741 · 1971 U.S. LEXIS 139
- Docket number
- 28
- Decided
- February 23, 1971
- Argued
- December 8, 1969
- Reargued
- November 17, 1970
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Petition denied or appeal dismissed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- John M. Harlan II
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- Mootness
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority |
Full case caption
Sanks et al. v. Georgia et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1970-040, docket 1970-040-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Mootness”
- Durham v. United States
- North Carolina v. Rice
- Sears v. Carpet
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- Bradley v. United States
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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