Smith v. Mississippi
373 U.S. 238 · Decided May 13, 1963 · 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
Smith v. Mississippi was decided on May 13, 1963 unanimously (9–0). SCDB codes the disposition as “petition denied or appeal dismissed.” The decision was issued per curiam (an unsigned opinion of the Court). SCDB classifies its main issue as “No merits, writ improvidently granted” in the Judicial Power area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 373 U.S. 238 · 83 S. Ct. 1265 · 10 L. Ed. 2d 321 · 1963 U.S. LEXIS 1618
- Docket number
- 667
- Decided
- May 13, 1963
- Argued
- April 30, 1963
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Per curiam (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Petition denied or appeal dismissed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- No merits, writ improvidently granted
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Legal provision
- Writ improvidently granted
- Type of law
- Other
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Arthur J. Goldberg | Majority |
Full case caption
Smith v. Mississippi
SCDB identifiers: case 1962-104, docket 1962-104-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “No merits, writ improvidently granted”
- Diamond v. Louisiana.
- In re Zipkin.
- Dresner v. City of Tallahassee.
- Brotherhood of Railway & Steamship Clerks v. United Air Lines, Inc.
- Hughes Tool Co. v. Trans World Airlines, Inc.
- Hughes Tool Co. v. Trans World Airlines, Inc.
Cases on the same legal provision: Writ improvidently granted
- Williams v. Zuckert
- Rudolph et Ux. v. United States
- Benz v. New York State Thruway Authority
- Newsom v. Smyth
- National Association for the Advancement of Colored People v. Overstreet
- Cichos v. Indiana
Same Term, same area (Judicial Power)
- United States v. Haley
- Garvin v. Cochran
- Ioannou v. New York
- Wetzel v. Ohio
- Southern Construction Co., Inc. v. Pickard
- Burlington Truck Lines, Inc. v. United States
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