List of court cases involving the American Civil Liberties Union

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has been involved in the following legal cases, either by representing a party, or filing an amicus brief, or otherwise significantly involved.

1920s

1925

• Tennessee v. Scopes (Scopes Trial) - paid for John Scopes' defense
• Gitlow v. New York, 268 U.S. 652 (1925) - represented Benjamin Gitlow

1927

• Whitney v. California, 274 U.S. 357 (1927)

1930s

1931

• Stromberg v. California, 283 U.S. 359 (1931) - represented Yetta Stromberg

1932

• Powell v. Alabama, 287 U.S. 45 (1932) - represented the Scottsboro Boys

1933

• United States v. One Book Called Ulysses

1935

• Patterson v. Alabama, 294 U.S. 600 (1935)

1937

• De Jonge v. Oregon, 299 U.S. 353 (1937) - represented Dirk De Jonge

1938

• Lovell v. City of Griffin, 303 U.S. 444 (1935)

1939

• Hague v. CIO, 307 U.S. 496 (1939).

1939

• Bolanos v. California - represented Wesley Packard

1940s

1940

• Cantwell v. Connecticut, 310 U.S. 296 (1940)

1941

• Edwards v. California, 314 U.S. 160 (1941)

1942

• Betts v. Brady, 316 U.S. 455 (1942)

1943

• Hirabayashi v. United States, 320 U.S. 81 (1943) - Amicus curiae for Gordon Kiyoshi Hirabayashi
• West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, 319 U.S. 624 (1943) - Amicus curiae
• Martin v. Struthers

1944

• Korematsu v. United States
• Smith v. Allwright

1946

• Hannegan v. Esquire

1947

• Everson v. Board of Education, 330 U.S. 1 (1947) - Amicus curiae for Arch R. Everson

1948

• Shelley v. Kraemer

1950s

1951

• Kunz v. New York

1952

• Joseph Burstyn, Inc. v. Wilson
• Rochin v. California

1954

• Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954) - Amicus curiae for Oliver Brown
• Hernandez v. Texas, 347 U.S. 475 (1954) civil rights

1957

• Roth v. United States, 354 U.S. 476 (1957) - Amicus curiae for Samuel Roth
• Watkins v. United States
• Yates v. United States, 354 U.S. 298 (1957) - Amicus curiae for Yates

1958

• Kent v. Dulles
• Speiser v. Randall, 357 U.S. 513 (1958) - ACLU lawyer Lawrence Speiser defended himself
• Trop v. Dulles

1959

• Smith v. California

1960s

1961

• Mapp v. Ohio, 377 U.S. 643 (1961) - Amicus curiae for Dollree Mapp
• Poe v. Ullman

1962

• Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 (1962) - represented Steven I. Engel

1963

• Abington School District v. Schempp, 374 U.S. 203 (1963) - represented Edward Schempp
• Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963) - Amicus curiae for Clarence Earl Gideon

1964

• Baggett v. Bullitt
• Carroll v. Princess Anne County
• Escobedo v. Illinois, 378 U.S. 478 (1964) - Amicus curiae for Danny Escobedo
• Jacobellis v. Ohio
• New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254 (1964) - Amicus curiae for The New York Times
• Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533 (1964) - represented B.A. Reynolds

1965

• Griswold v. Connecticut, 381 U.S. 479 (1965) - Amicus curiae for Estelle T. Griswold
• Lamont v. Postmaster General
• United States v. Seeger, 380 U.S. 163 (1965) - Amicus curiae for Seeger, Jakobson and Peter

1966

• Bond v. Floyd
• Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966) - Amicus curiae for Ernesto Miranda

1967

• Keyishian v. Board of Regents
• Loving v. Virginia
• Whitus v. Georgia

1968

• Epperson v. Arkansas, 393 U.S. 97 (1968) - Amicus curiae for Susan Epperson
• Jones v. Mayer, 392 U.S. 409 (1968) - Amicus curiae for Joseph Lee Jones
• King v. Smith
• Levy v. Louisiana
• Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (1968) - Amicus curiae for John W. Terry
• Washington v. Lee

1969

• Brandenburg v. Ohio, 395 U.S. 444 (1969) - represented Clarence Brandenburg
• Gregory v. Chicago
• Street v. New York
• Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, 393 U.S. 503 (1969) - represented the Tinker and Eckhardt families
• Watts v. United States

1970s

1970

• Goldberg v. Kelly

1971

• Cohen v. California, 403 U.S. 15 (1971) - Amicus curiae for Paul Robert Cohen
• New York Times Co. v. United States, 403 U.S. 713 (1971) - Amicus curiae for The New York Times and The Washington Post
• Organization for a Better Austin v. Keefe
• Reed v. Reed, 404 U.S. 71 (1971) - represented Sally Reed
• United States v. Vuitch

1972

• Eisenstadt v. Baird, 405 U.S. 438 (1972) - Amicus curiae for William Baird
• Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238 (1972) - Amicus curiae for William Furman, Lucious Jackson and Elmer Branch
• Laird v. Tatum, 408 U.S. 1^[1]

1973

• Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973)
• Doe v. Bolton, 410 U.S. 179 (1973) - represented "Mary Doe"
• Frontiero v. Richardson, 411 U.S. 677 (1973) - Amicus curiae for Sharron Frontiero
• Schlesinger v. Holtzman
• Miller v. California, 413 U.S. 15 (1973) - Amicus curiae for Marvin Miller

1974

• Communist Party of Indiana v. Whitcomb
• Smith v. Goguen
• United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683 (1974) - Amicus curiae against Richard Nixon

1975

• O'Connor v. Donaldson
• Taylor v. Louisiana

1976

• Buckley v. Valeo

1977

• Wooley v. Maynard

1978

• In re Primus
• National Socialist Party of America v. Village of Skokie, 432 U.S. 43 (1977) - represented the National Socialist Party of America. Also known as Smith v. Collin

1980s

1980

• Pruneyard Shopping Center v. Robins

1982

• Island Trees School District v. Pico
• New York v. Ferber, 458 U.S. 747 (1982) - Amicus curiae for Paul Ferber
• McLean v. Arkansas

1983

• Bob Jones University v. United States
• City of Akron v. Akron Center for Reproductive Health, 462 U.S. 416 (1983).

1985

• Wallace v. Jaffree, 472 U.S. 38 (1985) - Amicus curiae for Ishmael Jaffree

1987

• Edwards v. Aguillard, 482 U.S. 578 (1987) - represented Aguillard pro bono

1988

• Nelson v. Streeter - represented artist in Harold Washington portrait controversy

1989

• County of Allegheny v. ACLU, 492 U.S. 573 (1989) - represented itself
• Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397 (1989) - Amicus curiae for Gregory Lee Johnson
• United States v. Verdugo-Urquidez, 494 U.S. 259 (1990) - Amicus curiae for Rene Martin Verdugo-Urquidez
• Webster v. Reproductive Health Services, 492 U.S. 490 (1989)

1990s

1990

• Cruzan v. Director of the Missouri Department of Health - represented Nancy Cruzan's family
• Employment Division v. Smith, 494 U.S. 872 (1990) - Amicus curiae for Alfred Smith and Galen Black
• Hodgson v. Minnesota, 497 U.S. 417 (1990).
• United States v. Eichman, 496 U.S. 310 (1990) - Amicus curiae for Shawn Eichman

1991

• Rust v. Sullivan, 500 U.S. 173 (1991).

1992

• Hudson v. McMillian
• Lee v. Weisman, 505 U.S. 577 (1992) - Amicus curiae for Deborah Weisman
• Planned Parenthood v. Casey, 505 U.S. 833 (1992) - represented Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania
• R. A. V. v. City of St. Paul, 505 U.S. 377 (1992) - Amicus curiae for R. A. V.

1993

• J.E.B. v. Alabama ex rel. T.B.
• Wisconsin v. Mitchell

1994

• City of Ladue v. Gilleo

1995

• Capitol Square Review Board v. Pinett
• Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah
• Hurley v. Irish-American Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Group of Boston
• McIntyre v. Ohio Elections Commission
• Miller v. Johnson, 515 U.S. 900 (1995).
• Campaign for Fiscal Equity, Inc. v. State of New York, - Amicus curiae^[2]

1996

• ACLU v. Zell Miller - represented itself
• Romer v. Evans, 517 U.S. 620 (1996).
• NOW v. Scheidler, - Amicus curiae

1997

• Reno v. ACLU, 521 U.S. 844 (1997).

1999

• ACLU v. Schundler
• Hunt v. Cromartie, 526 U.S. 541 (1999) - Amicus curiae
• Sutton v. United Air Lines, Inc.

2000s

2000

• Stenberg v. Carhart, 530 U.S. 914 (2000) - Amicus curiae
• Curley v. NAMBLA - represented NAMBLA pro bono
• Boy Scouts of America v. Dale, 530 U.S. 640 (2000) - Amicus curiae
• City of Indianapolis v. Edmond

2002

• ACLU v. Ashcroft (2002)
• Swierkiewicz v. Sorema N. A.

2003

• State v. Dalton
• McConnell v. FEC
• Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003) - Amicus curiae
• Goodridge v. Department of Public Health - Amicus curiae
• Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of New England - Amicus curiae
• United States v. American Library Association

2004

• ACLU v. Ashcroft (2004)
• ACLU v. Department of Defense - appellant
• Hamdi v. Rumsfeld - Amicus curiae
• Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow - Amicus curiae
• Rumsfeld v. Padilla - Amicus curiae
• Rasul v. Bush - Amicus curiae
• Locke v. Davey - Amicus curiae

2005

• Castle Rock v. Gonzales - Amicus curiae for Jessica Gonzales
• Citizens for Equal Protection v. Bruning - Plaintiff alongside Citizens for Equal Protection and Nebraska Advocates for Justice Equality
• City of San Diego and Mt. Soledad Memorial Association v. Paulson - represented Philip Paulson
• McCreary County v. ACLU of Kentucky - ACLU defended itself
• The King’s English v. Shurtleff - represented King's English and others
• Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District - represented eleven parents
• Varian v. Delfino - Amicus curiae for Michelangelo Delfino and Mary Day
• Gonzales v. Oregon - Amicus curiae for Oregon
• Rumsfeld v. Forum for Academic and Institutional Rights - Amicus curiae for Forum for Academic and Institutional Rights
• MGM v. Grokster - Amicus curiae in support of Grokster

2006

• Qassim v. Bush - Amicus curiae in support of Qassim
• ACLU v. NSA
• Howard v. Arkansas - represented Matthew Lee Howard and other plaintiffs

2007

• Morse v. Frederick - Amicus curiae in support of Frederick
• Gonzales v. Carhart and Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood - Amicus curiae in support of Carhart and Planned Parenthood

2008

• Abdel-Moniem El-Ganayni vs. the United States Department of Energy et al. - represented Dr. El-Ganayni pro-bono

2009

• In re Gill - represented Martin Gill
• Safford Unified School District v. Redding – represented respondent Redding

2010s

2010

• Perry v. Schwarzenegger - Amicus curiae; private communications between officials in the organization were ordered to be released publicly as court evidence
• Amnesty v. Blair - Amicus curiae^[3]
• Davis v. Billington

2013

• Clapper v. Amnesty International
• Missouri v. McNeely
• United States v. Windsor

2015

• Ingersoll v. Arlene's Flowers
• ACLU and others v. NSA
• Obergefell v. Hodges

2017

• Stewart v. Heineman^[4][5][6]

2020s

2021

• Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L.^[7]

2024

• National Rifle Association of America v. Vullo^[8]

Alphabetical

• Abington School District v. Schempp
• Abrams v. United States
• ACLU v. NSA
• ACLU v. Schundler
• Ashcroft v. American Civil Liberties Union
• American Civil Liberties Union v. Ashcroft
• American Civil Liberties Union v. Department of Defense
• Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of Northern New England
• Baggett v. Bullitt
• Betts v. Brady
• Bob Jones University v. United States
• Bond v. Floyd
• Boy Scouts of America v. Dale
• Brandenburg v. Ohio
• Brown v. Board of Education
• Buckley v. Valeo
• Cantwell v. Connecticut
• Capitol Square Review Board v. Pinett
• Carroll v. Princess Anne County
• Castle Rock v. Gonzales
• Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah
• Citizens for Equal Protection v. Bruning
• City of Akron v. Akron Center for Reproductive Health
• City of Ladue v. Gilleo
• City of Indianapolis v. Edmond
• Cohen v. California
• Communist Party of Indiana v. Whitcomb
• County of Allegheny v. ACLU
• Nancy Cruzan
• Curley v. NAMBLA
• Davis v. Billington
• De Jonge v. Oregon
• Doe v. Bolton
• Edwards v. Aguillard
• Edwards v. California
• Eisenstadt v. Baird
• Abdel-Moniem El-Ganayni
• Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow
• Employment Division v. Smith
• Engel v. Vitale
• Epperson v. Arkansas
• Escobedo v. Illinois
• Everson v. Board of Education
• Frontiero v. Richardson
• Furman v. Georgia
• Gideon v. Wainwright
• Gitlow v. New York
• Goldberg v. Kelly
• Gonzales v. Carhart
• Gonzales v. Oregon
• Goodridge v. Department of Public Health
• Gregory v. Chicago
• Griswold v. Connecticut
• Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization
• Hamdi v. Rumsfeld
• Hannegan v. Esquire
• Hirabayashi v. United States
• Hodgson v. Minnesota
• Howard v. Arkansas
• Hudson v. McMillian
• Hunt v. Cromartie
• Hurley v. Irish-American Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Group of Boston
• Ingersoll v. Arlene's Flowers
• In re Gill
• In re Primus
• Island Trees School District v. Pico
• Jacobellis v. Ohio
• J.E.B. v. Alabama ex rel. T.B.
• Jones v. Alfred H. Mayer Co.
• Joseph Burstyn, Inc. v. Wilson
• Kent v. Dulles
• Keyishian v. Board of Regents
• King v. Smith
• Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District
• Korematsu v. United States
• Kunz v. New York
• Lamont v. Postmaster General
• Lawrence v. Texas
• Lee v. Weisman
• Levy v. Louisiana
• Locke v. Davey
• Lovell v. City of Griffin
• Loving v. Virginia
• Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L.
• Mapp v. Ohio
• Martin v. Struthers
• McConnell v. Federal Election Commission
• McCreary County v. ACLU of Kentucky
• McIntyre v. Ohio Elections Commission
• McLean v. Arkansas
• MGM Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd.
• Miller v. California
• Miller v. Johnson
• Miranda v. Arizona
• Morse v. Frederick
• Mount Soledad cross controversy
• National Organization for Women, Inc. v. Scheidler
• National Rifle Association of America v. Vullo
• National Socialist Party of America v. Village of Skokie
• New York Times Co. v. Sullivan
• New York Times Co. v. United States
• New York v. Ferber
• O'Connor v. Donaldson
• Organization for a Better Austin v. Keefe
• Patterson v. Alabama
• Perry v. Schwarzenegger
• Planned Parenthood v. Casey
• Poe v. Ullman
• Powell v. Alabama
• Pruneyard Shopping Center v. Robins
• Qassim v. Bush
• R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul
• Rasul v. Bush
• Reed v. Reed
• Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union
• Reynolds v. Sims
• Rochin v. California
• Roe v. Wade
• Romer v. Evans
• Roth v. United States
• Rumsfeld v. Forum for Academic and Institutional Rights, Inc.
• Rumsfeld v. Padilla
• Rust v. Sullivan
• Scopes Trial
• Schlesinger v. Holtzman
• Shelley v. Kraemer
• Smith v. Allwright
• Smith v. Collin
• Smith v. California
• Smith v. Goguen
• Speiser v. Randall
• State v. Dalton
• Stenberg v. Carhart
• Stewart v. Heineman
• Street v. New York
• Stromberg v. California
• Sutton v. United Air Lines, Inc.
• Swierkiewicz v. Sorema N. A.
• Taylor v. Louisiana
• Terry v. Ohio
• Texas v. Johnson
• The King's English v. Shurtleff
• Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District
• Trop v. Dulles
• United States v. Eichman
• United States v. One Book Called Ulysses
• United States v. Nixon
• United States v. Seeger
• United States v. Verdugo-Urquidez
• United States v. Vuitch
• Varian v. Delfino
• Wallace v. Jaffree
• Washington v. Lee
• Watkins v. United States
• Watts v. United States
• Webster v. Reproductive Health Services
• West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
• Whitney v. California
• Whitus v. Georgia
• Wisconsin v. Mitchell
• Wooley v. Maynard
• Yates v. United States