John D. Ashcroft, Attorney General v. American Civil Liberties Union et al.
Decided June 29, 2004. Anthony McLeod Kennedy delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 03-218 · 542 U.S. 656 (2004) · Cited 419 times
Holding
The Third Circuit was correct to affirm the District Court’s ruling that enforcement of COPA should be enjoined because the statute likely violates the First 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 5–4.
Majority · 3
- Anthony McLeod Kennedy · delivered the opinion of the Court
- Clarence Thomas
- David Hackett Souter
Concurring · 2
- John Paul Stevens · filed a concurring opinion
- Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Dissenting · 4
- Antonin Scalia · filed a dissenting opinion
- Sandra Day O'Connor
- Stephen Gerald Breyer · filed a dissenting opinion
- William Hubbs Rehnquist
“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.
- Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union · 521 U.S. 844 (1997)
- United States v. Playboy Entertainment Group, Inc. · 529 U.S. 803 (2000)
- Miller v. California · 413 U.S. 15 (1973)
- Ashcroft v. American Civil Liberties Union · 535 U.S. 564 (2002)
- United States v. American Library Assn., Inc. · 539 U.S. 194 (2003)
- Sable Communications of California, Inc. v. Federal Communications Commission · 492 U.S. 115 (1989)
- Ginzburg v. United States · 383 U.S. 463 (1966)
- National Labor Relations Board v. Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp. · 301 U.S. 1 (1937)
- Ginsberg v. New York · 390 U.S. 629 (1968)
- Denver Area Educational Telecommunications Consortium, Inc. v. Federal Communications Commission · 518 U.S. 727 (1996)
- Roth v. United States · 354 U.S. 476 (1957)
- Marks v. United States · 430 U.S. 188 (1977)
- FW/PBS, Inc. v. City of Dallas · 493 U.S. 215 (1990)
- R. A. v. v. City of St. Paul · 505 U.S. 377 (1992)
- Crowell v. Benson · 285 U.S. 22 (1932)
- Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. v. Federal Communications Commission · 512 U.S. 622 (1994)
- Doran v. Salem Inn, Inc. · 422 U.S. 922 (1975)
- Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition · 535 U.S. 234 (2002)
- Erznoznik v. City of Jacksonville · 422 U.S. 205 (1975)
- Illinois State Board of Elections v. Socialist Workers Party · 440 U.S. 173 (1979)
- McConnell v. Federal Election Commission · 540 U.S. 93 (2003)
- Walters v. National Assn. of Radiation Survivors · 473 U.S. 305 (1985)
- City of Los Angeles v. Alameda Books, Inc. · 535 U.S. 425 (2002)
- Smith v. United States · 431 U.S. 291 (1977)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Free Speech Coalition, Inc. v. Paxton · 606 U.S. 461 (2025)
- United States v. Alvarez · 567 U.S. 709 (2012)
- McCreary County v. American Civil Liberties Union of Ky. · 545 U.S. 844 (2005)
- Trump v. CASA, Inc. · 606 U.S. 831 (2025)
- Gonzales v. O Centro Espírita Beneficente União Do Vegetal · 546 U.S. 418 (2006)
- Sole v. Wyner · 551 U.S. 74 (2007)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
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Anthony McLeod Kennedy’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court
Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2004). 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).