Brown v. Louisiana
383 U.S. 131 · Decided February 23, 1966 · 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
Brown v. Louisiana was decided on February 23, 1966 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Abe Fortas wrote the opinion announcing the judgment of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Sit-in demonstrations against racial discrimination” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 383 U.S. 131 · 86 S. Ct. 719 · 15 L. Ed. 2d 637 · 1966 U.S. LEXIS 2845
- Docket number
- 41
- Decided
- February 23, 1966
- Argued
- December 6, 1965
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Judgment of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Abe Fortas
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Abe Fortas | Judgment of the Court | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Brown et al. v. Louisiana
SCDB identifiers: case 1965-053, docket 1965-053-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Sit-in demonstrations against racial discrimination”
- Drews v. Maryland
- Walker v. Georgia
- Parrot v. City of Tallahassee
- Abernathy v. Alabama.
- McKinnie v. Tennessee
- Blow v. North Carolina
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Pate v. Robinson
- Giaccio v. PennsylvaniaLaw held unconstitutional
- Elfbrandt v. RussellLaw held unconstitutional
- Shuttlesworth v. City of Birmingham
- Davis v. North Carolina
- Schmerber v. California
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Wmca, Inc. v. Lomenzo
- Bradley v. School Board of City of Richmond
- Rogers v. Paul
- Soric v. Immigration and Naturalization Service.
- Evans v. Newton
- California v. Buzard
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