Lamont v. Postmaster General

Supreme Court of the United States

Argued April 26, 1965
Decided May 24, 1965

Full case name

Corliss Lamont, dba Basic Pamphlets, Appellant v. Postmaster General of the United States

Citations

85 S.Ct. 1493; 14 L.Ed.2d 398

Holding

The Postal Service and Federal Employees Salary Act is unconstitutional since it imposes on addressees an affirmative obligation that amounts to an unconstitutional limitation of their rights under the First Amendment.

Court membership

Chief Justice Earl Warren

Associate Justices Hugo Black · William O. Douglas Tom C. Clark · John M. Harlan II William J. Brennan, Jr. · Potter Stewart Byron White · Arthur Goldberg

Case opinions

Majority

Douglas

Concurrence

Brennan, joined by Goldberg

Concurrence

Harlan

White took no part in the consideration or decision of the case.

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Lamont v. Postmaster General

Lamont v. Postmaster General, 381 U.S. 301 (1965), was a landmark First Amendment Supreme Court case, in which the ruling of the Supreme Court struck down § 305(a) of the Postal Service and Federal Employees Salary Act of 1962, a federal statute requiring the Postmaster General to detain and deliver only upon the addressee's request unsealed foreign mailings of "communist political propaganda."

Under the stricken code, a recipient of material deemed "political propaganda" was required to indicate their intent to receive such materials before they were delivered and accept the material by indicating a desire to do so on a card provided by the Post Office.^[1] The card stated that except with the addressee's name and consent to receiving the material, it would be returned within 20 days, the Post Office assuming that the addressee does not want that publication or any similar one in the future.^[1]

The Court held:

the Act, as construed and applied, is unconstitutional, since it imposes on the addressee an affirmative obligation which amounts to an unconstitutional limitation of his rights under the First Amendment.^[1]

The Court was unanimous in the judgment (8-0, with Justice White recused). Justice Brennan wrote a concurring opinion (which Justice Goldberg joined) and Justice Harlan also wrote a concurring opinion.

References

1 2 3 Lamont v. Postmaster General, 381 U. S. 301 (1965). US Supreme Court Center. Jusita.com. Accessed 9 April 2009. http://supreme.justia.com/us/381/301

United States Postal Service

Organizations	American Letter Mail Company American Postal Workers Union Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service Bureau of Transportation Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee National Alliance of Postal and Federal Employees National Association of Letter Carriers National Association of Presort Mailers National Postal Mail Handlers Union National Rural Letter Carriers' Association Postal Regulatory Commission Postal Transportation Service PostalWatch Incorporated United States Postal Inspection Service United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General

Systems	Address Management System Advanced Facer-Canceler System Coding Accuracy Support System Flats Sequencing System Locatable Address Conversion System United States Postal Savings System

Services	Click-N-Ship Express mail in the United States National Change Of Address Permit mail Permit Reply Mail Postal notes Railway Mail Service Registered mail Special Delivery Special handling

Facilities	Air Mail Facility Boat Railway Post Office Community post office Dead letter office Highway Post Office J. W. Westcott II List of United States Post Offices National Postal Museum Network Distribution Center Railway mail service library Red Brick Roads Sectional center facility Streetcar Railway Post Office Terminal Railway Post Office

Legal	Comstock laws Post Office Act Postal Reorganization Act Postal Service Act Private Express Statutes Rural Post "Good" Roads Act of 1916 Title 39 of the United States Code

Related	Airmails of the United States CAR-RT SORT Catcher pouch Cimarron Redoubt Domestic Mail Manual Facing Identification Mark Flats Information-Based Indicia The Inspectors Intelligent Mail barcode Label 228 List of postal killings List of U.S. state abbreviations List of United States airmail stamps Mail bag Mail cover Mail hook Mail Isolation Control and Tracking Mail jumping Mail pouch Mail sack Mail satchel The Mail Story Nixie ORM-D Owney (dog) Pony Express mochila Postage stamps and postal history of the United States Postal Alpha Numeric Encoding Technique Postal Clause Postal worker Postmaster General Prohibitory Order Remote Bar Coding System Rural Free Delivery Rural letter carrier STD-4C United States post office murals List of murals USPS Post Office Box Lobby Recycling program United States Postal Service creed

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Lamont v. Postmaster General

See also

References

Further reading