County of Sacramento v. Teri Lewis and Thomas Lewis
523 U.S. 833 · Decided May 26, 1998 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
County of Sacramento v. Teri Lewis and Thomas Lewis was decided on May 26, 1998 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice David H. Souter wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Governmental liability” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 523 U.S. 833 · 118 S. Ct. 1708 · 140 L. Ed. 2d 1043 · 1998 U.S. LEXIS 3404
- Docket number
- 96-1337
- Decided
- May 26, 1998
- Argued
- December 9, 1997
- 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
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- David H. Souter
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Governmental liability
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Concurrence | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
County of Sacramento, et al. v. Teri Lewis and Thomas Lewis, Personal Representatives of the Estate of Philip Lewis, Deceased
SCDB identifiers: case 1997-071, docket 1997-071-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- Daniel Bogan and Marilyn Roderick v. Janet Scott-Harris
- Department of the Army v. Blue Fox, Inc.
- David Conn and Carol Najera v. Paul L. Gabbert
- William Jefferson Clinton v. Paula Corbin Jones
- Regents of the University of California v. John Doe Etc.
- United States v. Winstar Corporation
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Frank X. Hopkins Petitioner v. Randolph K. Reeves
- Ohio Adult Parole Authority v. Eugene Woodard
- Newsweek, Inc. v. Florida Department of Revenue
- City of West Covina v. Lawrence Perkins
- American Manufacturers Mutual Insurance Company v. Delores Scott Sullivan
- William R. Pounders v. Penelope Watson
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- State Oil Company v. Barkat U. Khan and Khan & Associates, Inc.Altered precedent
- Bay Area Laundry and Dry Cleaning Pension Trust Fund v. Ferbar Corporation of California, Inc.
- Fidelity Financial Services, Inc. v. Richard V Fink
- Christopher H. Lunding v. New York Tax Appeals TribunalLaw held unconstitutional
- Newsweek, Inc. v. Florida Department of Revenue
- National Credit Union Administration v. First National Bank & Trust 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