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Orr v. Orr

Significance, Questions Never Asked, A Woman's Place Is . . ., A Divorce Decision Changes The Meaning Of Marriage



Appellant

William Herbert Orr

Appellee

Lillian M. Orr

Appellant's Claim

That Alabama's alimony statutes were unconstitutional.

Chief Lawyer for Appellant

John L. Capell III

Chief Lawyer for Appellee

W. F. Horsley

Justices for the Court

Harry A. Blackmun, William J. Brennan, Jr. (writing for the Court), Thurgood Marshall, John Paul Stevens, Potter Stewart, Byron R. White

Justices Dissenting

Warren E. Burger, Lewis F. Powell, Jr., William H. Rehnquist

Place

Washington, D.C.

Date of Decision

5 March 1979

Decision

Invalidated Alabama's statutes by which husbands, but not wives, might be required to pay alimony upon divorce.

Related Cases

  • Stanton v. Stanton, 421 U.S. 7 (1975).
  • Califano v. Webster, 430 U.S. 313 (1977).

Sources

West's Encyclopedia of American Law, Vol. 1. St. Paul, MN: West Group, 1998.

Further Readings

  • Goldstein, Leslie Friedman. The Constitutional Rights of Women, rev. ed. Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press, 1989.
  • New York Times, March 1979, pp. 6, 7, 11.
  • O'Connor, Sandra Day. "Women and the Constitution: A Bicentennial Perspective." in Women, Politics and the Constitution. Naomi B. Lynn, ed. Binghamton, NY: Harrington Park Press, 1990.

Additional topics

Law Library - American Law and Legal InformationNotable Trials and Court Cases - 1973 to 1980