Brock v. Pierce County
476 U.S. 253 · Decided May 19, 1986 · Supreme Court of the United States
Record summary. This page is generated from the Supreme Court Database’s coded data about the case. It describes who decided what, not the Court’s reasoning. Read the opinion itself before relying on it. Not legal advice.
At a glance
Brock v. Pierce County was decided on May 19, 1986 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Thurgood Marshall wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Judicial review of agency actions” in the Judicial Power area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 476 U.S. 253 · 106 S. Ct. 1834 · 90 L. Ed. 2d 248 · 1986 U.S. LEXIS 156
- Docket number
- 85-385
- Decided
- May 19, 1986
- Argued
- April 1, 1986
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Thurgood Marshall
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Judicial review of agency actions
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Legal provision
- 29 U.S.C. § 106
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority |
Full case caption
Brock, Secretary of Labor v. Pierce County
SCDB identifiers: case 1985-084, docket 1985-084-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Judicial review of agency actions”
- Bowen v. Michigan Academy of Family Physicians
- Young v. Community Nutrition Institute
- United States v. City of Fulton
- Commodity Futures Trading Commission v. Schor
- Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System v. Dimension Financial Corp.
- Interstate Commerce Commission v. Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers
Same Term, same area (Judicial Power)
- Pennsylvania Bureau of Correction v. United States Marshals Service
- Lake Coal Co., Inc. v. Roberts & Schaefer Co.
- Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System v. Dimension Financial Corp.
- Parsons Steel, Inc. v. First Alabama Bank
- United States v. Koecher
- Paulussen v. Herion
Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error