Abrams v. United States
United States Supreme Court
250 U.S. 616, 40 S. Ct. 17, 63 L. Ed. 1173 (1919)
- Written by Megan Petersen, JD
Facts
Abrams and four others (plaintiffs) were convicted of conspiring to violate the Espionage Act of 1917 (EA), as amended in 1918. Abrams printed many copies of leaflets, written both in English and Yiddish, denouncing the United States’ decision to send troops to Russia as part of World War I. Other leaflets denounced the United States’ general involvement in World War I and United States efforts to curtail the Russian Revolution. The distribution of these leaflets was found unlawful by the federal district court because it involved the spreading of language meant to incite resistance to the war effort and to urge the curtailment of production of essential war materials. Abrams challenged his convictions on the grounds that the EA was an unconstitutional violation of the First Amendment, and the United States Supreme Court granted certiorari.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Clarke, J.)
Dissent (Holmes, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 815,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.