Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Portland Cement Company of Utah
450 U.S. 156 · Decided March 3, 1981 · 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
Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Portland Cement Company of Utah was decided on March 3, 1981 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Federal taxation (Internal Revenue Code)” in the Federal Taxation area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 450 U.S. 156 · 101 S. Ct. 1037 · 67 L. Ed. 2d 140 · 1981 U.S. LEXIS 16
- Docket number
- 79-1907
- Decided
- March 3, 1981
- Argued
- January 13, 1981
- 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
- Lewis F. Powell Jr.
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Federal taxation (Internal Revenue Code)
- Issue area
- Federal Taxation
- Legal provision
- Internal Revenue Code
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority |
Full case caption
Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Portland Cement Company of Utah
SCDB identifiers: case 1980-046, docket 1980-046-01.
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Cases on the same legal provision: Internal Revenue Code
- Jewett et Ux. v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
- United States v. Euge
- Diedrich v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
- Bob Jones University v. United StatesAltered precedent
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- United States v. Rodgers
Same Term, same area (Federal Taxation)
- United States v. Darusmont et Ux.
- Hcsc-Laundry v. United States
- United States v. Swank
- St. Martin Evangelical Lutheran Church v. South Dakota
- Rowan Cos., Inc. v. United States
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