Welsh v. United States
398 U.S. 333 · Decided June 15, 1970 · 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
Welsh v. United States was decided on June 15, 1970 by a vote of 5–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Hugo L. Black wrote the opinion announcing the judgment of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Conscientious objectors” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 398 U.S. 333 · 90 S. Ct. 1792 · 26 L. Ed. 2d 308 · 1970 U.S. LEXIS 23
- Docket number
- 76
- Decided
- June 15, 1970
- Argued
- January 20, 1970
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Judgment of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–3
- Majority opinion
- Hugo L. Black
- Opinion assigned by
- Hugo L. Black
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Conscientious objectors
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- Selective Service statutes
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Judgment of the Court | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Dissent |
Did not participate: Harry A. Blackmun.
Full case caption
Welsh v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1969-111, docket 1969-111-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Conscientious objectors”
- Mulloy v. United States
- United States v. Sisson
- United States v. Weller
- Gillette v. United States
- Ehlert v. United States
- McGee v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: Selective Service statutes
- Toussie v. United States
- Kolden v. Selective Service Local Board No. 4
- Breen v. Selective Service Local Board No. 16
- Gutknecht v. United States
- Astrup v. Immigration and Naturalization Service
- McKart v. United States
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
- Bryson v. United States
- Carlos v. New York
- Cowgill v. California
- Jones v. State Board of Education of Tennessee
- Cole v. Richardson
- Cain v. Kentucky
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