National Association for the Advancement of Colored People v. Alabama ex Rel. Patterson

357 U.S. 449 · Decided June 30, 1958 · Supreme Court of the United States

At a glance

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People v. Alabama ex Rel. Patterson was decided on June 30, 1958 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice John M. Harlan II wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “First Amendment, miscellaneous” in the First Amendment area.

Read the opinion

• CourtListener (Free Law Project) — opinion text
• Library of Congress — official U.S. Reports scan

Case details

How the Justices voted

Full case caption

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People v. Alabama ex Rel. Patterson, Attorney General

SCDB identifiers: case 1957-146, docket 1957-146-01.

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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