United States ex Rel. Touhy v. Ragen
340 U.S. 462 · Decided February 26, 1951 · 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
United States ex Rel. Touhy v. Ragen was decided on February 26, 1951 by a vote of 6–2. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Stanley F. Reed wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Freedom of Information Act and related laws” in the Privacy area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 340 U.S. 462 · 71 S. Ct. 416 · 95 L. Ed. 2d 417 · 1951 U.S. LEXIS 2155
- Docket number
- 83
- Decided
- February 26, 1951
- Argued
- November 27, 1950
- Court era
- Vinson Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–2
- Majority opinion
- Stanley F. Reed
- Opinion assigned by
- Fred M. Vinson
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Freedom of Information Act and related laws
- Issue area
- Privacy
- Legal provision
- 5 U.S.C. § 22
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Dissent | Co-authored an opinion |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Co-authored an opinion |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Majority | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson | Majority | |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Majority |
Did not participate: Tom C. Clark.
Full case caption
United States ex Rel. Touhy v. Ragen, Warden, et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1950-037, docket 1950-037-01.
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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