Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States

E4586

Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States is a landmark 1964 U.S. Supreme Court case that upheld the constitutionality of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by affirming Congress’s power to prohibit racial discrimination in public accommodations under the Commerce Clause.

Jump to: Surface forms Statements Referenced by

Statements (52)

Predicate Object
instanceOf United States Supreme Court case
constitutional law case
landmark civil rights case
arguedDate October 5, 1964
businessType motel
challengedProvision Civil Rights Act of 1964
surface form: Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
challengedStatute Civil Rights Act of 1964
citation 379 U.S. 241
constitutionalBasis Commerce Clause
surface form: Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution
constitutionalProvisionCited Article I, Section 8, Clause 3 of the United States Constitution
constitutionalProvisionRaised Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution
Thirteenth Amendment
surface form: Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
country United States of America
surface form: United States
court Supreme Court of the United States
decisionDate December 14, 1964
decisionType unanimous decision
defendant United States of America
surface form: United States
fullName Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States self-linksurface differs
surface form: Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc., et al. v. United States, et al.
holding Congress may prohibit racial discrimination in public accommodations under the Commerce Clause
Places of public accommodation that serve interstate travelers or use goods that have moved in interstate commerce may be regulated by Congress
Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a valid exercise of Congress’s power under the Commerce Clause
impact expanded interpretation of the Commerce Clause to include regulation of local activities affecting interstate commerce
strengthened federal enforcement of civil rights in public accommodations
issue constitutionality of Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
justiceInMajority Arthur J. Goldberg
Byron R. White
Earl Warren
Hugo L. Black
John M. Harlan II
Potter Stewart
Tom C. Clark
William J. Brennan Jr.
William O. Douglas
legalArea Commerce Clause jurisprudence
civil rights law
constitutional law
public accommodations law
locationOfBusiness Atlanta
surface form: Atlanta, Georgia
lowerCourt United States district courts
surface form: United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
lowerCourtDisposition upheld the constitutionality of Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
majorityOpinionBy Tom C. Clark
page 241
plaintiff Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States self-linksurface differs
surface form: Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc.
relatedCase Katzenbach v. McClung
reporter United States Reports
subjectMatter racial discrimination in public accommodations
segregation in lodging facilities
supremeCourtDisposition affirmed
topic Civil Rights Act of 1964 enforcement
federal power over interstate commerce
volume 379
year 1964

Referenced by (16)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Article I, Section 8, Clause 3 of the United States Constitution citedIn Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States fullName Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States self-linksurface differs
this entity surface form: Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc., et al. v. United States, et al.
Katzenbach v. McClung holding Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
this entity surface form: Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a valid exercise of Congress’s commerce power as applied to local restaurants
Commerce Clause interpretedInCase Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States plaintiff Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States self-linksurface differs
this entity surface form: Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc.
Katzenbach v. McClung precededBy Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
this entity surface form: Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States (decided same day, companion case)
Gibbons v. Ogden precedentFor Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
Katzenbach v. McClung relatedCase Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
Ollie’s Barbecue relatedCase Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
CRA 1964 relatedCaseLaw Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
subject surface form: Civil Rights Act of 1964
Ollie’s Barbecue case relatedTo Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
Title II – Public Accommodations upheldByCase Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
Civil Rights Act of 1964 upheldByCourtCase Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 upheldIn Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States