Finley v. United States
490 U.S. 545 · Decided May 22, 1989 · 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
Finley v. United States was decided on May 22, 1989 by a vote of 5–4. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Antonin Scalia 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
- 490 U.S. 545 · 109 S. Ct. 2003 · 104 L. Ed. 2d 593 · 1989 U.S. LEXIS 2526
- Docket number
- 87-1973
- Decided
- May 22, 1989
- Argued
- February 28, 1989
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Antonin Scalia
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Governmental liability
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Federal Tort Claims Act or Alien Tort Statute
- 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. | Dissent | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority |
Full case caption
Finley v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1988-093, docket 1988-093-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- Boyle v. United Technologies Corp.
- Sheridan et Ux. v. United States
- Schweiker v. Chilicky
- Berkovitz v. United States
- Port Authority Trans-Hudson Corp. v. Feeney
- Office of Personnel Management v. Charles Richmond
Cases on the same legal provision: Federal Tort Claims Act or Alien Tort Statute
- United States v. Hohri
- William McNeil v. United States
- Jose Francisco Sosa v. Humberto Alvarez-Machain
- United States v. Joseph Olson
- Richards v. United States
- United States v. Brown
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Goldberg v. Sweet
- Allegheny Pittsburgh Coal Co. v. County Commission of Webster CountyLaw held unconstitutional
- Firestone Tire & Rubber Co. v. Bruch
- Northwest Central Pipeline Corp. v. State Corporation Commission of Kansas
- Amerada Hess Corp. v. Director
- Massachusetts v. Morash
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