Communist Party of the United States v. Subversive Activities Control Board
351 U.S. 115 · Decided April 30, 1956 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Communist Party of the United States v. Subversive Activities Control Board was decided on April 30, 1956 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Felix Frankfurter wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Internal security legislation” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 351 U.S. 115 · 76 S. Ct. 663 · 100 L. Ed. 2d 1003 · 1956 U.S. LEXIS 1722
- Docket number
- 48
- Decided
- April 30, 1956
- Argued
- November 17, 1955
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Felix Frankfurter
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Internal security legislation
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- Smith Act, Subversive Activities Control Act, or similar legislation
- Type of law
- Federal 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 | Dissent | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority |
Full case caption
Communist Party of the United States v. Subversive Activities Control Board
SCDB identifiers: case 1955-074, docket 1955-074-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Internal security legislation”
- Pennsylvania v. Nelson
- Cole v. Young
- Yates v. United States
- Rowoldt v. Perfetto
- Kent v. Dulles
- Dayton v. Dulles
Cases on the same legal provision: Smith Act, Subversive Activities Control Act, or similar legislation
- Bonetti v. Rogers
- Uphaus v. Wyman
- Niukkanen v. McAlexander
- Kimm v. Rosenberg
- W. E. B. Dubois Clubs of America v. Clark
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
- Pennsylvania v. Nelson
- Slochower v. Board of Higher Education of New York CityLaw held unconstitutional
- Johnston v. United States
- Cole v. Young
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