Williams v. United States
401 U.S. 646 · Decided April 5, 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
Williams v. United States was decided on April 5, 1971 by a vote of 6–2. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Byron R. White wrote the opinion announcing the judgment of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Retroactivity of new rights” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 401 U.S. 646 · 91 S. Ct. 1148 · 28 L. Ed. 2d 388 · 1971 U.S. LEXIS 58
- Docket number
- 81
- Decided
- April 5, 1971
- Argued
- October 21, 1970
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Judgment of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–2
- Majority opinion
- Byron R. White
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Retroactivity of new rights
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Retroactive application of a constitutional right
- Type of law
- Other
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Judgment of the Court | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority |
Did not participate: William O. Douglas.
Full case caption
Williams v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1970-073, docket 1970-073-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Retroactivity of new rights”
- Mackey v. United States
- United States v. United States Coin & CurrencyLaw held unconstitutional
- Hill v. California
- Adams v. Illinois
- Ivan V v. City of New York
- Debacker v. Brainard
Cases on the same legal provision: Retroactive application of a constitutional right
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Colombo v. New York
- Thompson v. United States
- North Carolina v. Alford
- Dutton v. Evans
- Wyman v. James
- Procunier v. Atchley
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