United States v. Harriss
347 U.S. 612 · Decided June 7, 1954 · 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 v. Harriss was decided on June 7, 1954 by a vote of 5–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “First Amendment, miscellaneous” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 347 U.S. 612 · 74 S. Ct. 808 · 98 L. Ed. 2d 989 · 1954 U.S. LEXIS 2657
- Docket number
- 32
- Decided
- June 7, 1954
- Argued
- October 19, 1953
- 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
- 5–3
- Majority opinion
- Earl Warren
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- First Amendment, miscellaneous
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- 2 U.S.C. § 261
- 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 | |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
Did not participate: Tom C. Clark.
Full case caption
United States v. Harriss et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1953-080, docket 1953-080-01.
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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