Swann v. Adams
385 U.S. 440 · Decided January 9, 1967 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Swann v. Adams was decided on January 9, 1967 by a vote of 7–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Byron R. White wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Reapportionment (other than Voting Rights Act plans)” in the Civil Rights area. SCDB records that the Court declared a state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision unconstitutional.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 385 U.S. 440 · 87 S. Ct. 569 · 17 L. Ed. 2d 501 · 1967 U.S. LEXIS 2577
- Docket number
- 136
- Decided
- January 9, 1967
- Argued
- December 6, 1966
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–2
- Majority opinion
- Byron R. White
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Held unconstitutional
- A state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal 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 | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Abe Fortas | Majority |
Full case caption
Swann et al. v. Adams, Secretary of State of Florida, et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1966-034, docket 1966-034-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Reapportionment (other than Voting Rights Act plans)”
- Fortson v. Morris
- Kilgarlin v. Hill
- Sailors v. Board of Education of the County of Kent
- Dusch v. Davis
- Lomenzo v. Wmca, Inc.
- Burns v. Richardson
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
- Whitus v. Georgia
- Long v. District Court of Iowa in and for Lee County
- Swenson v. Bosler
- Anders v. California
- Reitman v. MulkeyLaw held unconstitutional
- Loving et Ux. v. VirginiaLaw held unconstitutional
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Long v. District Court of Iowa in and for Lee County
- Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Errico
- Fortson v. Morris
- Woodby v. Immigration and Naturalization Service
- Whitus v. Georgia
- Berenyi v. District Director
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