Board of Pardons et al. v. Allen et al.

Decided June 9, 1987. William Joseph Brennan Jr. delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 86-461 · 482 U.S. 369 (1987) · Cited 775 times

Holding

When scrutinized under the Greenholtz standards, the Montana statute clearly creates a liberty interest in parole release that is protected by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

The Court’s statement of the holding, from the opinion’s syllabus. The syllabus is prepared by the Reporter of Decisions and is not part of the opinion of the Court — read the official opinion for authority.

How the Justices voted

Decided 6–3.

“Concurring” means agreeing with the outcome; any split shown is the Court’s judgment, not each Justice’s reasoning. Source: the Supreme Court Database (Spaeth et al.), Washington University.

Precedents cited

Supreme Court decisions this opinion relies on, ordered by how often it cites each. Cases in our collection link through; others are named.

• Greenholtz v. Inmates of the Nebraska Penal & Correctional Complex · 442 U.S. 1 (1979)
• Board of Regents of State Colleges v. Roth · 408 U.S. 564 (1972)
• Hewitt v. Helms · 459 U.S. 460 (1983)
• Meachum v. Fano · 427 U.S. 215 (1976)
• Connecticut Board of Pardons v. Dumschat · 452 U.S. 458 (1981)
• Wolff v. McDonnell · 418 U.S. 539 (1974)
• Montanye v. Haymes · 427 U.S. 236 (1976)
• Citizens to Preserve Overton Park, Inc. v. Volpe · 401 U.S. 402 (1971)
• Olim v. Wakinekona · 461 U.S. 238 (1983)
• Heckler v. Chaney · 470 U.S. 821 (1985)
• Memphis Light, Gas & Water Division v. Craft · 436 U.S. 1 (1978)
• Cleavinger v. Saxner · 474 U.S. 193 (1985)

Cited by

Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.

• Kentucky Department of Corrections v. Thompson · 490 U.S. 454 (1989)
• Zadvydas v. Davis · 533 U.S. 678 (2001)
• Sandin v. Conner · 515 U.S. 472 (1995)
• Immigration & Naturalization Service v. St. Cyr · 533 U.S. 289 (2001)

Official text

Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)

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William Joseph Brennan Jr.’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court

Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1987). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-07-03. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).