Donna S. Riegel v. Medtronic, Inc.
552 U.S. 312 · Decided February 20, 2008 · 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
Donna S. Riegel v. Medtronic, Inc. was decided on February 20, 2008 by a vote of 8–1. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Federal preemption of state court jurisdiction” in the Federalism area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 552 U.S. 312 · 128 S. Ct. 999 · 169 L. Ed. 2d 892 · 2008 U.S. LEXIS 2013
- Docket number
- 06-179
- Decided
- February 20, 2008
- Argued
- December 4, 2007
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–1
- Majority opinion
- Antonin Scalia
- Opinion assigned by
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Federal preemption of state court jurisdiction
- Issue area
- Federalism
- Legal provision
- 21 U.S.C. § 360
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Majority |
Full case caption
Donna S. Riegel, Individually and as Administrator of the Estate of Charles R. Riegel v. Medtronic, Inc.
SCDB identifiers: case 2007-017, docket 2007-017-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Federal preemption of state court jurisdiction”
- Arnold M. Preston v. Alex E. Ferrer
- Warner-Lambert Co., LLC v. Kimberly Kent
- Jose Ernesto Medellin v. Texas
- Richard A. Levin v. Commerce Energy, Inc.
- Dennis Bates v. Dow Agrosciences LLC
- Keith Smith v. Bayer Corporation
Same Term, same area (Federalism)
- Arnold M. Preston v. Alex E. Ferrer
- G. Steven Rowe v. New Hampshire Motor Transport Association
- Warner-Lambert Co., LLC v. Kimberly Kent
- Jose Ernesto Medellin v. Texas
- Chamber of Commerce of the United States v. Brown
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