Milton v. Wainwright
407 U.S. 371 · Decided June 22, 1972 · 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
Milton v. Wainwright was decided on June 22, 1972 by a vote of 5–4. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice Warren E. Burger wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Right to counsel” in the Criminal Procedure area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 407 U.S. 371 · 92 S. Ct. 2174 · 33 L. Ed. 2d 1 · 1972 U.S. LEXIS 30
- Docket number
- 70-5012
- Decided
- June 22, 1972
- Argued
- January 12, 1972
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Warren E. Burger
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Right to counsel
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Legal provision
- Harmless error
- Type of law
- Other
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority |
Full case caption
Milton v. Wainwright, Corrections Director
SCDB identifiers: case 1971-151, docket 1971-151-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Right to counsel”
- Argersinger v. Hamlin
- United States v. Tucker
- Gagnon v. ScarpelliLaw held unconstitutional
- Coleman v. Alabama
- Faretta v. California
- Herring v. New YorkLaw held unconstitutional
Cases on the same legal provision: Harmless error
- Harrington v. California
- Fontaine v. California
- Anderson v. Nelson
- Moore v. United States
- Wheaton v. California
- Chapman v. California
Same Term, same area (Criminal Procedure)
- Harris v. Washington
- Cruz v. Hauck
- Wilwording v. Swenson
- Santobello v. New York
- Picard v. Connor
- United States v. Campos-Serrano
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