Loper v. Beto, Corrections Director, et al.
Decided March 22, 1972. Potter Stewart delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 70-5388 · 405 U.S. 473 (1972) · Cited 474 times
We don’t yet publish a summary of this opinion — read the official text below for the Court’s holding and reasoning.
How the Justices voted
Plurality · 1
- Potter Stewart · delivered the opinion of the Court
Concurring · 1
- Byron Raymond White · filed a concurring opinion
Dissenting · 4
- Harry Andrew Blackmun · filed a dissenting opinion
- Lewis Franklin Powell Jr.
- Warren Earl Burger · filed a dissenting opinion
- William Hubbs Rehnquist · filed a dissenting opinion
“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.
- Gideon v. Wainwright · 372 U.S. 335 (1963)
- Burgett v. Texas · 389 U.S. 109 (1967)
- Betts v. Brady · 316 U.S. 455 (1942)
- United States v. Tucker · 404 U.S. 443 (1972)
- Kitchens v. Smith · 401 U.S. 847 (1971)
- Johnson v. Zerbst · 304 U.S. 458 (1938)
- Townsend v. Sain · 372 U.S. 293 (1963)
- Carnley v. Cochran · 369 U.S. 506 (1962)
- Michelson v. United States · 335 U.S. 469 (1948)
- Ashwander v. Tennessee Valley Authority · 297 U.S. 288 (1936)
- Harris v. New York · 401 U.S. 222 (1971)
- Linkletter v. Walker · 381 U.S. 618 (1965)
- Walder v. United States · 347 U.S. 62 (1954)
- MacKey v. United States · 401 U.S. 667 (1971)
- Rescue Army v. Municipal Court of Los Angeles · 331 U.S. 549 (1947)
- Pickelsimer v. Wainwright · 375 U.S. 2 (1963)
- National Labor Relations Board v. Pittsburgh Steamship Co. · 337 U.S. 656 (1949)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Lewis v. United States · 445 U.S. 55 (1980)
- Dowling v. United States · 493 U.S. 342 (1990)
- Parke v. Raley · 506 U.S. 20 (1992)
- Baldasar v. Illinois · 446 U.S. 222 (1980)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
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Source: the U.S. Reports via govinfo.gov; authoring Justice and vote lineup from the Supreme Court Database (Washington University). 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).