Burger King Corp. v. Rudzewicz
471 U.S. 462 · Decided May 20, 1985 · 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
Burger King Corp. v. Rudzewicz was decided on May 20, 1985 by a vote of 6–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice William J. Brennan Jr. wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Due process, jurisdiction over nonresidents” in the Due Process area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 471 U.S. 462 · 105 S. Ct. 2174 · 85 L. Ed. 2d 528 · 1985 U.S. LEXIS 14
- Docket number
- 83-2097
- Decided
- May 20, 1985
- Argued
- January 8, 1985
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–2
- Majority opinion
- William J. Brennan Jr.
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Due process, jurisdiction over nonresidents
- Issue area
- Due Process
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Dissent | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority |
Did not participate: Lewis F. Powell Jr..
Full case caption
Burger King Corp. v. Rudzewicz
SCDB identifiers: case 1984-097, docket 1984-097-01.
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Other cases on “Due process, jurisdiction over nonresidents”
- Phillips Petroleum Co. v. Shutts
- Helicopteros Nacionales de Colombia, S. A. v. Hall
- Keeton v. Hustler Magazine, Inc.
- Calder v. Jones
- Asahi Metal Industry Co., Ltd. v. Superior Court of California
- Omni Capital International, Ltd. v. Rudolf Wolff & Co., Ltd.
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Ponte v. Real
- Black v. Romano
- Francis v. Franklin
- Superintendent v. Hill
- Cleveland Board of Education v. Loudermill
- Ake v. Oklahoma
Same Term, same area (Due Process)
- United States v. 50 Acres of Land
- Cleveland Board of Education v. Loudermill
- United States v. Locke
- Ponte v. Real
- Black v. Romano
- Atkins v. Parker
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