Most Controversial Supreme Court Cases

Michael Gibson Ranker
Staff 62,803 views 10 items 70 voters

Looking for information about some of the most controversial Supreme Court cases in history? These U.S. Supreme Court decisions, some of which date back more than 100 years, include rulings on such hot button issues as abortion, civil rights, states' rights, gay rights and election laws. These decisions by the Supreme Court of the United States are considered by many to be among the most controversial. If you don't see a case on this list, feel free to add it in the comments section below!

The U.S. Supreme Court is the highest court in the land so many of its decisions will be controversial as they are final and apply to everyone in the country. When dealing with issues such as abortion there will always be a large divide between the people and many different views will clash. When the government makes a final decision on an issue like abortion of course there will be controversy as it's impossible to make everyone happy. But that is what the Supreme Court is supposed to do. We pick the best judges to sit and listen to cases and make the right decisions based on our laws and customs. There has to be someone to make these controversial decisions and the Supreme Court has done a good job of it so far. Nobody will agree with all of their decisions but it is not possible to say that the country would be better off without a Supreme Court. Take a look at these cases and see what knowledge you can gain from their logic.

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Roe v. Wade

Roe v. Wade remains among the U.S. Supreme Court's most highly controversial decisions. In 1973, the High Court ruled that a woman who chooses to have an abortion (in the first trimester) is within her constitutional rights to do so. This ruling essentially legalized first trimester abortion - striking down individual state laws restricting it.
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Brown v. Board of Education

The Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision was certainly controversial. This 1954 ruling by the High Court essentially determined that it is unconstitutional for states to establish separate schools for blacks and whites. The ruling, which said that race-based segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, set the stage for the Civil Rights Movement, as it abolished segregation in schools (though not elsewhere).
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Bush v. Gore

This landmark ruling essentially determined the outcome of the 2000 presidential race. The U.S. Supreme Court's 5-4 decision reversed an earlier Florida Supreme Court decision and ended a statewide recount of ballots. The justices' ruling essentially awarded Florida's 25 electoral votes to George W. Bush, saying that allowing the recount to continue would violate the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection Clause.
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Lawrence v. Texas

2003's Lawrence v. Texas Supreme Court decision was definitely controversial. In the case, the High Court ruled that the state of Texas' anti-sodomy law, prohibiting sex acts between persons of the same gender, was unconstitutional. In a nutshell, the justices' decision said that intimate sexual conduct between consenting adults, same sex or not, was protected under the Fourteenth Amendment.
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Engel v. Vitale

The U.S. Supreme Court's 1962 ruling in the landmark Engel v. Vitale case established the basis for restricting prayer in public schools. Parents of students in New Hyde Park, New York, filed suit claiming that the voluntary prayer in the school system violated the First Amendment. The High Court ruled that the prayer was an unconstitutional state establishment of religion and thus, a violation of First Amendment rights.

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Loralee Bex
Most Controversial Supreme Court Cases at 2/21/2013 7:30 AM

this isn't a bad thing to write about controversial supreme court cases , my friend.
neverabadtimeforpudding
Most Controversial Supreme Court Cases at 1/14/2013 1:30 PM

this isn't a bad thing to write about famous supreme court cases , ranker.
Melodee Emerich
Most Controversial Supreme Court Cases at 10/08/2012 2:30 AM

Supreme Court Decisions why not
Rich
Most Controversial Supreme Court Cases at 1/11/2012 5:26 PM

While It is clear that many reasonable people would find this to be a controvercial decision, I ponder why I'm the only person who supports the decision. Read the following quote from the decision: "Speech is powerful. It can stir people to action, move them to tears of both joy and sorrow, and—as it did here— inflict great pain. On the facts before us, we cannot react to that pain by punishing the speaker. As a Nation we have chosen a different course—to protect even hurtful speech on public issues to ensure that we do not stifle public debate." -Chief Justice John Roberts

Most Controversial Supreme Court Cases

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