Gideon v. Wainwright
372 U.S. 335 · Decided March 18, 1963 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Gideon v. Wainwright was decided on March 18, 1963 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Hugo L. Black wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Right to counsel” in the Criminal Procedure area. SCDB codes this decision as formally altering one or more of the Court's own precedents. SCDB records that the Court declared a state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision unconstitutional.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 372 U.S. 335 · 83 S. Ct. 792 · 9 L. Ed. 2d 799 · 1963 U.S. LEXIS 1942
- Docket number
- 155
- Decided
- March 18, 1963
- Argued
- January 15, 1963
- 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
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Hugo L. Black
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Right to counsel
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Altered precedent
- Yes — formally altered the Court's precedent
- Held unconstitutional
- A state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Arthur J. Goldberg | Majority |
Full case caption
Gideon v. Wainwright, Corrections Director
SCDB identifiers: case 1962-058, docket 1962-058-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Right to counsel”
- White v. Maryland
- Walton v. Arkansas
- Newsome v. North Carolina
- Pickelsimer v. Wainwright
- Barnes v. North Carolina
- Crews v. Wainwright
Cases on the same legal provision: Sixth Amendment (right to counsel)
- Entsminger v. Iowa
- McConnell v. Rhay
- Arsenault v. Massachusetts
- Kirby v. Illinois
- United States v. Ash
- Moore v. Illinois
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Walton v. Arkansas
- United States v. Sampson
- Jones v. Cunningham
- Shotwell Manufacturing Co. v. United States
- Wong Sun v. United States
- Simler v. Conner
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