Woodward v. United States
341 U.S. 112 · Decided April 23, 1951 · 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
Woodward v. United States was decided on April 23, 1951 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. The decision was issued per curiam (an unsigned opinion of the Court). SCDB classifies its main issue as “Military, active duty” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 341 U.S. 112 · 71 S. Ct. 605 · 95 L. Ed. 2d 806 · 1951 U.S. LEXIS 1957
- Docket number
- 476
- Decided
- April 23, 1951
- Argued
- April 11, 1951
- Court era
- Vinson Court
- Decision type
- Per curiam (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Military, active duty
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- 38 U.S.C. § 802
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Majority | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Majority |
Full case caption
Woodward v. United States et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1950-066, docket 1950-066-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Military, active duty”
- Robertson v. Chambers
- Madsen v. Kinsella
- Hiatt v. Brown
- Le Maistre v. Leffers
- United States v. Brown
- United States v. Bayer
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Ackermann v. United States
- Robertson v. Chambers
- Moser v. United States
- United States v. Alcea Band of Tillamooks
- Shepherd v. Florida
- United States v. Williams
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