Cathy Burns v. Rick Reed
500 U.S. 478 · Decided May 30, 1991 · 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
Cathy Burns v. Rick Reed was decided on May 30, 1991 unanimously (9–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision in part and reversed or vacated it in part. Justice Byron R. White wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Liability under civil rights acts” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 500 U.S. 478 · 111 S. Ct. 1934 · 114 L. Ed. 2d 547 · 1991 U.S. LEXIS 3018
- Docket number
- 89-1715
- Decided
- May 30, 1991
- Argued
- November 28, 1990
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed and reversed (or vacated) in part
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Byron R. White
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Liability under civil rights acts
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (Reconstruction Civil Rights Acts)
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority |
Full case caption
Cathy Burns v. Rick Reed
SCDB identifiers: case 1990-090, docket 1990-090-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Liability under civil rights acts”
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- Raymond Mireles v. Howard Waco
- Barbara Hafer v. James C. Melo, Jr.
- Myra Jo Collins v. City of Harker Heights
- Howard Wyatt v. Bill Cole and John Robbins
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Cases on the same legal provision: 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (Reconstruction Civil Rights Acts)
- Felder v. Casey
- National Private Truck Council, Inc. v. Oklahoma Tax Commission
- Marian Johnson v. Kristine L. Fankell
- Patsy v. Board of Regents of the State of Florida
- Fair Assessment in Real Estate Association, Inc. v. McNary
- Chardon v. Fernandez
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- In re Michael Sindram
- Board of Education of Oklahoma City Public Schools v. Robert L. Dowell
- Mark E. Dennis v. Margaret L. Higgins
- Oklahoma Tax Commission v. Citizen Band Potawatomi Indian Tribe of Oklahoma
- International Union v. Johnson Controls, Inc.
- Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Arabian American Oil Co.
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