Scull v. Virginia ex Rel. Committee on Law Reform and Racial Activities
359 U.S. 344 · Decided May 4, 1959 · 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
Scull v. Virginia ex Rel. Committee on Law Reform and Racial Activities was decided on May 4, 1959 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Hugo L. Black wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Legislative investigations on internal security” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 359 U.S. 344 · 79 S. Ct. 838 · 3 L. Ed. 2d 865 · 1959 U.S. LEXIS 1762
- Docket number
- 51
- Decided
- May 4, 1959
- Argued
- November 18, 1958
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- 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)
- Legislative investigations on internal security
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority |
Full case caption
Scull v. Virginia ex Rel. Committee on Law Reform and Racial Activities
SCDB identifiers: case 1958-082, docket 1958-082-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Legislative investigations on internal security”
- Uphaus v. Wyman
- Barenblatt v. United States
- Raley v. Ohio
- Flaxer v. United States
- Sacher v. United States
- McPhaul v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Napue v. Illinois
- Spano v. New York
- Safeway Stores, Inc. v. Oklahoma Retail Grocers Association, Inc.
- Northwestern States Portland Cement Co. v. Minnesota
- Blackburn v. Alabama
- Nelson v. County of Los Angeles
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
- Flaxer v. United States
- Vitarelli v. Seaton
- Uphaus v. Wyman
- Barenblatt v. United States
- Raley v. Ohio
- Greene v. McElroy
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