Home > Great American Court Cases > Lassiter v. Department of Social Services

Legal Citation: 452 U.S. 18 (1981)

Petitioner
Abby Gail Lassiter

Respondent
Department of Social Services of Durham County, North Carolina

Petitioner's Claim
Because she was indigent, the Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause dictated that the state provide her with counsel.

Chief Lawyer for Petitioner
Leowen Evans

Chief Lawyer for Respondent
Thomas Russell Odom

Justices for the Court
Warren E. Burger, Lewis F. Powell, Jr., William H. Rehnquist, Potter Stewart (writing for the Court), Byron R. White

Justices Dissenting
Harry A. Blackmun, William J. Brennan, Jr., Thurgood Marshall, John Paul Stevens

Place
Washington, D.C.

Date of Decision
1 June 1981

Decision
Refusing to appoint counsel for an indigent parent in proceedings terminating parental status...