NAACP v. ALABAMA

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Case Basics
Docket No. 
91
Petitioner 
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
Respondent 
Alabama
Decided By 
Warren Court (1957-1958)
Opinion 
357 U.S. 449 (1958)
Argued 
January 15-16, 1958
Decided 
Monday, June 30, 1958
Advocates
Robert L. Carter
(Argued the cause for the petitioner)
Edmon L. Rinehart
(Argued the cause for the respondent)
Tags
Term:
Location: Alabama State Capitol
Facts of the Case 

As part of its strategy to enjoin the NAACP from operating, Alabama required it to reveal to the State's Attorney General the names and addresses of all the NAACP's members and agents in the state.

Question 

Did Alabama's requirement violate the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?

Conclusion 
Decision: 9 votes for NAACP, 0 vote(s) against
Legal provision: Association

Yes. The unanimous Court held that a compelled disclosure of the NAACP's membership lists would have the effect of suppressing legal association among the group's members. Nothing short of an "overriding valid interest of the State," something not present in this case, was needed to justify Alabama's actions.

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NAACP v. ALABAMA. The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law. 08 February 2012. <http://www.oyez.org/cases/1950-1959/1957/1957_91/>.
NAACP v. ALABAMA, The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, http://www.oyez.org/cases/1950-1959/1957/1957_91/ (last visited February 8, 2012).
"NAACP v. ALABAMA," The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, accessed February 8, 2012, http://www.oyez.org/cases/1950-1959/1957/1957_91/.