United States v. Providence Journal Co.
485 U.S. 693 · Decided May 2, 1988 · 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. Providence Journal Co. was decided on May 2, 1988 by a vote of 6–2. SCDB codes the disposition as “petition denied or appeal dismissed.” Justice Harry A. Blackmun wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “No merits, want of jurisdiction” in the Judicial Power area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 485 U.S. 693 · 108 S. Ct. 1502 · 99 L. Ed. 2d 785 · 1988 U.S. LEXIS 2034
- Docket number
- 87-65
- Decided
- May 2, 1988
- Argued
- January 20, 1988
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Petition denied or appeal dismissed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–2
- Majority opinion
- Harry A. Blackmun
- Opinion assigned by
- William J. Brennan Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- No merits, want of jurisdiction
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Legal provision
- 25 U.S.C. § 518
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Dissent | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
Did not participate: Anthony M. Kennedy.
Full case caption
United States v. Providence Journal Co. et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1987-073, docket 1987-073-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “No merits, want of jurisdiction”
- O'Dell v. Espinoza
- Princeton University v. Schmid
- Gerstein v. Coe
- Office of Senator Mark Dayton v. Brad Hanson
- Cardinale v. Louisiana
- Powerex Corp. v. Reliant Energy Services, Inc.
Same Term, same area (Judicial Power)
- Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. McCoy
- Karcher v. May
- National Labor Relations Board v. United Food & Commercial Workers Union
- Vermont v. Cox
- Thompson v. Thompson
- Deakins v. Monaghan
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