Fuentes v. Shevin, Attorney General of Florida, et al.
Petitioners challenged the constitutionality of the Uniform Commercial Code provisions of two states, Florida and Pennsylvania, which allowed for the summary seizure of a person's goods or chattels under a writ of replevin.
407 U.S. 67 · No. 70-5039 · 1971 term · Burger Court
Decided Jun 12, 1972 · argued Nov 9, 1971
Civil rights · Debtors' rights
Struck down a state law
Majority opinion: Potter Stewart
The voteMajorityDissent
4–34 in the majority, 3 in dissent
3 dissents (6–3)
Vacated and remanded. Fuentes won.
What this ruling means
Vacated and remanded: the Supreme Court set aside the decision of the Florida Southern U.S. District Court, wiping it out without necessarily saying the result was wrong, and sent the case back for that court to decide again under the right legal standard.
Fuentes was the petitioner, the side that asked the Supreme Court to review the case. “Won” means the Court gave that side the result it asked for.
From the Supreme Court Database. A justice who agreed with the result but not the reasoning counts in the majority.
Summary
The opening of the case’s Wikipedia article: what the case was about and what the Court held.
Fuentes v. Shevin, 407 U.S. 67 (1972), was a case decided by the Supreme Court of the United States wherein petitioners challenged the constitutionality of the Uniform Commercial Code provisions of two states, Florida and Pennsylvania, which allowed for the summary seizure of a person's goods or chattels under a writ of replevin. The statutes were challenged under the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court held that the statutes acted as deprivations of plaintiff's property without due process.
The Court noted that seizure without notice and the opportunity for a hearing is acceptable only under limited circumstances:
The seizure is necessary for an important public or government interest,
There is a need for prompt action, and
The seizure is initiated by an agent of the government.
These exceptions would apply (for example) when property is tainted food, misbranded drugs or unpaid taxes needed to fund a war.
Data notes
The text is Wikipedia’s (CC BY-SA 4.0), matched to the case by its citation, docket number or name and year, and is not checked against the opinion. The site keeps the article’s opening section, ending on its last full sentence. The one-sentence summary under the title is the Decisions list’s: Wikipedia’s own ruling sentence, or, tagged “AI-written”, one Claude wrote from this opening.
How the justices voted
Each justice who took part, placed by their Martin–Quinn ideology score for the 1971 term. Filled: the 4 in the majority. Hollow: the 3 in dissent. Colour is the party of the president who appointed them.
Majority(4)
Potter StewartWrote the majority opinion
William DouglasJoined the majority
William BrennanJoined the majority
Thurgood MarshallJoined the majority
Dissent(3)
Byron WhiteWrote a dissent
Harry BlackmunJoined a dissent
Warren BurgerJoined a dissent
Did not take part: Lewis Powell, William Rehnquist.
Data notes
Each justice’s vote and what they wrote are from the justice-centered file of the Supreme Court Database. “Wrote a concurrence” means the justice sided with the majority and wrote separately; a justice who dissented in part is counted on the side they took overall. A justice who wrote nothing is listed as joining their side.
Positions are each justice’s Martin–Quinn score for the case’s term, the same scores as the Ideology page: negative is more liberal, positive more conservative. A score sums up a justice’s votes across the whole term, so it says where they usually sit, not why they voted as they did here. The median line is the Court’s median justice that term.
The parties
Who brought the case to the Court, who answered it, and how it got there.
- Petitioner
- FuentesBuyer, purchaser
- Respondent
- Shevin, Attorney General of Florida, et al.State (Florida)
- Reached the Court by
- Appeal (the Court was required to hear it)
Data notes
The names are the two sides of the case’s title. The description under each is the Supreme Court Database’s category for that party, in its own wording. The petitioner is the side that asked the Supreme Court to review the decision below. “Why it was taken” appears only when the majority opinion says lower courts disagreed or were unsure about the question; reasons that would fit any case (“to resolve the question presented”, “an important question”) are left out.
The law at issue
The law the Court was asked to apply, and the kind of power it used to decide.
- Provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Kind of law
- Constitutional Amendment
- Decided by
- Judicial review (state level)
- Struck down
- A state law, as unconstitutional
Data notes
The Supreme Court Database codes the main constitutional provision, statute or court rule each case turned on, and the basis of the decision: judicial review of a federal or state law, interpreting a statute, supervising the lower courts, and so on. A case can rest on more than one. “Overruled” counts only where the majority opinion says so.
Timeline
What happened at the Court and how the case got there, newest first.
- Jun 12, 1972DecidedDecided · Decided 4–3: vacated and remanded. Fuentes won.
- Nov 9, 1971ArguedArgued · Oral argument before the Court.
- Not datedTaken upTaken up · Reached the Supreme Court on appeal, which the Court had to hear.
- Not datedCourt belowCourt below · Began in and was decided by the Florida Southern U.S. District Court.
Data notes
From the Supreme Court Database: the court the case began in, the court whose decision the Supreme Court reviewed and what that court did, how the case came to the Court, and the dates of argument and decision. The database does not date the steps in the lower courts. Court names are the database’s.
Other decisions on the same issue
16 other argued cases since 1946 on debtors' rights, newest first.
- Midland Funding LLC v. Johnson137 S. Ct. 1407May 15, 2017 · 137 S. Ct. 1407Civil rights5–36–3 band
- Sheriff v. Gillie578 U.S. 317May 16, 2016 · 578 U.S. 317Civil rights8–0Unanimous band
- Radlax Gateway Hotel, LLC, et al. v. Amalgamated Bank566 U.S. 639May 29, 2012 · 566 U.S. 639Civil rights8–0Unanimous band
- Karen L. Jerman v. Carlisle, McNellie, Rini, Kramer & Ulrich Lpa, et al.559 U.S. 573Apr 21, 2010 · 559 U.S. 573Civil rights7–27–2 band
- Connecticut and John F. Digiovanni v. Brian K. Doehr501 U.S. 1Jun 6, 1991 · 501 U.S. 1Civil rights9–0Unanimous band
- Langley et ux. v. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation484 U.S. 86Dec 1, 1987 · 484 U.S. 86Civil rights8–0Unanimous band
- Third National Bank in Nashville v. Impac Limited, Inc., et al.432 U.S. 312Jun 17, 1977 · 432 U.S. 312Civil rights6–36–3 band
- North Georgia Finishing, Inc. v. Di-Chem, Inc.419 U.S. 601Jan 22, 1975 · 419 U.S. 601Civil rights6–36–3 band
- Calero-Toledo et al. v. Pearson Yacht Leasing Co.416 U.S. 663May 15, 1974 · 416 U.S. 663Civil rights7–27–2 band
- Mitchell v. W. T. Grant Co.416 U.S. 600May 13, 1974 · 416 U.S. 600Civil rights5–45–4 band
- Lynch et al. v. Household Finance Corp. et al.405 U.S. 538Mar 23, 1972 · 405 U.S. 538Civil rights7–0Unanimous band
- Swarb et al. v. Lennox et al.405 U.S. 191Feb 24, 1972 · 405 U.S. 191Civil rights6–18–1 band
- D. H. Overmyer Co., Inc., of Ohio et al. v. Frick Co.405 U.S. 174Feb 24, 1972 · 405 U.S. 174Civil rights7–0Unanimous band
- Lindsey et al. v. Normet et al.405 U.S. 56Feb 23, 1972 · 405 U.S. 56Civil rights5–27–2 band
- Simmons et ux. v. West Haven Housing Authority399 U.S. 510Jun 29, 1970 · 399 U.S. 510Civil rights6–27–2 band
- Sniadach v. Family Finance Corp. of Bay View et al.395 U.S. 337Jun 9, 1969 · 395 U.S. 337Civil rights7–18–1 band
Data notes
Every other orally argued case with a clear vote, from the 1946 term on, that the Supreme Court Database files under the same issue as this one. The database gives each case one issue from a list of about 270 (abortion, search and seizure of vehicles, the death penalty, and so on), whatever law it turned on.
Official record
Read the full opinion on Justia, the argument audio on Oyez and Wikipedia. Case data from the Supreme Court Database, Version 2026 Release 01, through the 2025 term.