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Chamberlin v. Dade County Board of Public Instruction

377 U.S. 402 · Decided June 1, 1964 · 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

Chamberlin v. Dade County Board of Public Instruction was decided on June 1, 1964 by a vote of 8–1. 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 “Establishment of religion” in the First Amendment area. SCDB records that the Court declared a state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision unconstitutional.

Read the opinion

Case details

Citations
377 U.S. 402 · 84 S. Ct. 1272 · 12 L. Ed. 2d 407 · 1964 U.S. LEXIS 1141
Docket number
939
Decided
June 1, 1964
Court era
Warren Court
Decision type
Per curiam (no oral argument)
Disposition
Reversed
Outcome for petitioner
The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
Vote
8–1
Opinion assigned by
Earl Warren
How the case arrived
Appeal
Issue area
First Amendment
Legal provision
First Amendment (establishment of religion)
Type of law
Constitutional amendment
Held unconstitutional
A state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision
Decision direction (SCDB)
Liberal what this means

How the Justices voted

JusticeVoteSeparate writing
Justice Hugo L. BlackSpecial concurrence
Justice William O. DouglasSpecial concurrenceWrote an opinion
Justice Tom C. ClarkMajority
Chief Justice Earl WarrenMajority
Justice John M. Harlan IIMajority
Justice William J. Brennan Jr.Majority
Justice Potter StewartJurisdictional dissent
Justice Byron R. WhiteMajority
Justice Arthur J. GoldbergMajority

Full case caption

Chamberlin et al. v. Dade County Board of Public Instruction et al.

SCDB identifiers: case 1963-132, docket 1963-132-01.

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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