City of Burlington v. Ernest Dague, Sr.
505 U.S. 557 · Decided June 24, 1992 · 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
City of Burlington v. Ernest Dague, Sr. was decided on June 24, 1992 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Attorneys' and officials' fees, compensation, or licenses” in the Attorneys area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 505 U.S. 557 · 112 S. Ct. 2638 · 120 L. Ed. 2d 449 · 1992 U.S. LEXIS 4363
- Docket number
- 91-810
- Decided
- June 24, 1992
- Argued
- April 21, 1992
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Antonin Scalia
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue area
- Attorneys
- Legal provision
- Clean Water Act (Federal Water Pollution Control Act)
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority |
Full case caption
City of Burlington v. Ernest Dague, Sr., et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1991-109, docket 1991-109-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Attorneys' and officials' fees, compensation, or licenses”
- Dale Farrar and Pat Smith v. William P. Hobby, Jr.
- Rafeh-Rafie Ardestani v. Immigration and Naturalization Service
- Donna E. Shalala v. Richard H. Schaefer
- Kay v. Ehrler
- West Virginia University Hospitals, Inc. v. Robert Casey
- In re Berger
Cases on the same legal provision: Clean Water Act (Federal Water Pollution Control Act)
- United States Department of Energy v. Ohio
- Arkansas v. Oklahoma
- Pud No. 1 of Jefferson County and City of Tacoma v. Washington Department of Ecology
- Gwaltney of Smithfield, Ltd. v. Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Inc.
- International Paper Co. v. Ouellette
- United States v. Riverside Bayview Homes, Inc.
Same Term, same area (Attorneys)
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