Philadelphia Newspapers Inc. v. Hepps

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Oral Argument

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Advocates

David H. Marion (Argued the cause for the appellants)

Ronald H. Surkin (Argued the cause for the appellees)

Case Basics

Docket No.:

84-1491

Appellee:

Hepps

Appellant:

Philadelphia Newspapers Inc.

Decided By:

Burger Court (1981-1986)

Opinion:

475 U.S. 767 (1986)

Argued:

Tuesday, December 3, 1985

Decided:

Monday, April 21, 1986

Issues:

First Amendment, Libel, Defamation

Cite this page

The Oyez Project, Philadelphia Newspapers Inc. v. Hepps , 475 U.S. 767 (1986)
available at: (http://oyez.org/cases/1980-1989/1985/1985_84_1491)

Facts of the Case:

In a series of articles, the Philadelphia Inquirer accused Hepps of links to organized crime and of capitalizing on that connection to influence the state legislature. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court favored Hepps and held that the newspaper was obligated to prove its accusations true.

Question:

Did the state supreme court's decision violate the First Amendment?

Conclusion:

Yes. Relying on its reasoning in Gertz v. Robert Welch Inc. (1974), the Court reversed the state court's decision. The Gertz standard for evaluating potentially libelous speech required that "the plaintiff bear the burden of showing falsity, as well as fault, before recovering damages."

Decisions

Decision: 5 votes for Philadelphia Newspapers Inc., 4 vote(s) against
Legal provision: Amendment 1: Speech, Press, and Assembly

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