United States v. Vuitch
402 U.S. 62 · Decided April 21, 1971 · 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. Vuitch was decided on April 21, 1971 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Hugo L. Black wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Abortion and contraceptives” in the Privacy area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 402 U.S. 62 · 91 S. Ct. 1294 · 28 L. Ed. 2d 601 · 1971 U.S. LEXIS 50
- Docket number
- 84
- Decided
- April 21, 1971
- Argued
- January 12, 1971
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Hugo L. Black
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- Abortion and contraceptives
- Issue area
- Privacy
- Legal provision
- Fifth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Jurisdictional dissent | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Jurisdictional dissent | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
United States v. Vuitch
SCDB identifiers: case 1970-088, docket 1970-088-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Abortion and contraceptives”
- Eisenstadt v. BairdLaw held unconstitutional
- Roe v. WadeLaw held unconstitutional
- Doe v. BoltonLaw held unconstitutional
- Poe v. Gerstein
- Connecticut v. Menillo
- Planned Parenthood of Central Missouri v. DanforthLaw held unconstitutional
Cases on the same legal provision: Fifth Amendment (due process)
- Giglio v. United States
- Barnes v. United States
- Marshall v. United States
- Arnett v. Kennedy
- Parker v. Levy
- Secretary of the Navy v. Avrech
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