Wolfe v. North Carolina
364 U.S. 177 · Decided June 27, 1960 · 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
Wolfe v. North Carolina was decided on June 27, 1960 by a vote of 5–4. SCDB codes the disposition as “petition denied or appeal dismissed.” Justice Potter Stewart wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Desegregation (general)” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 364 U.S. 177 · 80 S. Ct. 1482 · 4 L. Ed. 2d 1650 · 1960 U.S. LEXIS 765
- Docket number
- 7
- Decided
- June 27, 1960
- Argued
- October 19, 1959
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Petition denied or appeal dismissed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Potter Stewart
- Opinion assigned by
- Felix Frankfurter
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- Desegregation (general)
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Dissent | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Wolfe et al. v. North Carolina
SCDB identifiers: case 1959-131, docket 1959-131-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Desegregation (general)”
- Burton v. Wilmington Parking Authority
- Anderson v. Alabama.
- Evers v. Dwyer
- Bailey v. PattersonLaw held unconstitutional
- Turner v. City of MemphisLaw held unconstitutional
- Eubanks v. Louisiana
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Kinsella v. United States ex Rel. SingletonLaw held unconstitutional
- Grisham v. HaganLaw held unconstitutional
- McElroy v. United States ex Rel. GuagliardoLaw held unconstitutional
- United States v. RainesAltered precedent
- United States v. Thomas
- Willis v. United States
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