Rumsfeld v. Padilla

542 U.S. 426 (2004)

Study Aids
Case Briefs Overview
Casebooks
Case Briefs
R
From our private database of 46,300+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Rumsfeld v. Padilla

United States Supreme Court
542 U.S. 426 (2004)

AR

Facts

Padilla (plaintiff) was a United States citizen who was arrested on a plane from Pakistan. The United States believed Padilla was an enemy combatant who intended to engage in terrorist acts. Padilla filed a writ of habeas corpus petition in the Southern District of New York, where Padilla was initially held. While Padilla’s petition was pending, President Bush ordered Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld to classify Padilla as an enemy combatant. That same day, Padilla was taken into custody by the Department of Defense and moved to the Consolidated Naval Brig in South Carolina. Padilla amended his petition and named as respondents President Bush, Secretary Rumsfeld, and Commander Marr, commander of the Consolidated Naval Brig. The government moved to dismiss, arguing that Padilla had to bring his petition in the District of South Carolina and name only Commander Marr as respondent. The district court found that Secretary Rumsfeld was a proper respondent, and the appeals court affirmed. The government appealed to the United States Supreme Court, which granted cert.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Rehquist, C.J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 802,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools—such as Yale, Berkeley, and Northwestern—even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 802,000 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.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 802,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,300 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Casebooks

Counterterrorism
Humanitarian Law

Key Terms

Related Videos