Slochower v. Board of Higher Education of New York City
350 U.S. 551 · Decided April 9, 1956 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Slochower v. Board of Higher Education of New York City was decided on April 9, 1956 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Tom C. Clark wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Loyalty oath, teachers” in the First Amendment area. SCDB records that the Court declared a municipal or other local ordinance unconstitutional.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 350 U.S. 551 · 76 S. Ct. 637 · 100 L. Ed. 2d 692 · 1956 U.S. LEXIS 1137
- Docket number
- 23
- Decided
- April 9, 1956
- Argued
- October 18, 1955
- 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
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Tom C. Clark
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- Loyalty oath, teachers
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- Fifth Amendment (self-incrimination)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Held unconstitutional
- A municipal or other local ordinance
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Concurrence | Co-authored an opinion |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Concurrence | Co-authored an opinion |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Dissent | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Slochower v. Board of Higher Education of New York City
SCDB identifiers: case 1955-055, docket 1955-055-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Loyalty oath, teachers”
- Wieman v. UpdegraffLaw held unconstitutional
- Cramp v. Board of Public Instruction of Orange CountyLaw held unconstitutional
- Keyishian v. Board of Regents of the University of the State of New YorkAltered precedentLaw held unconstitutional
- Connell v. HigginbothamLaw held unconstitutional
Cases on the same legal provision: Fifth Amendment (self-incrimination)
- Quinn v. United States
- Emspak v. United States
- Regan v. New York
- Curcio v. United States
- Lawn v. United States
- Brown v. United States
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
- Pennsylvania v. Nelson
- Communist Party of the United States v. Subversive Activities Control Board
- Johnston v. United States
- Cole v. Young
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