Fort Gratiot Sanitary Landfill, Inc. v. Michigan Department of Natural Resources
504 U.S. 353 · Decided June 1, 1992 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Fort Gratiot Sanitary Landfill, Inc. v. Michigan Department of Natural Resources was decided on June 1, 1992 by a vote of 7–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice John Paul Stevens wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “State or local business regulation” in the Economic Activity area. SCDB records that the Court declared a state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision unconstitutional.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 504 U.S. 353 · 112 S. Ct. 2019 · 119 L. Ed. 2d 139 · 1992 U.S. LEXIS 3252
- Docket number
- 91-636
- Decided
- June 1, 1992
- Argued
- March 30, 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
- 7–2
- Majority opinion
- John Paul Stevens
- Opinion assigned by
- Byron R. White
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- State or local business regulation
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Article I, Section 8, Paragraph 3 (interstate commerce clause)
- Type of law
- Constitution
- Held unconstitutional
- A state or territorial law, regulation or constitutional provision
- 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 | |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority |
Full case caption
Fort Gratiot Sanitary Landfill, Inc. v. Michigan Department of Natural Resources et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1991-079, docket 1991-079-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “State or local business regulation”
- General Motors Corporation v. Evert Romein
- C & a Carbone, Inc. v. Town of ClarkstownLaw held unconstitutional
- Healy v. the Beer InstituteAltered precedentLaw held unconstitutional
- Northwest Central Pipeline Corp. v. State Corporation Commission of Kansas
- CTS Corp. v. Dynamics Corporation of America
- Maine v. Taylor
Cases on the same legal provision: Article I, Section 8, Paragraph 3 (interstate commerce clause)
- Chemical Waste Management, Inc. v. Guy HuntLaw held unconstitutional
- Allied-Signal, Inc. v. Director
- Kraft General Foods, Inc. v. Iowa Department of Revenue and FinanceLaw held unconstitutional
- New York v. United StatesLaw held unconstitutional
- State of Wyoming v. State of OklahomaLaw held unconstitutional
- Itel Containers International Corporation v. Joe Huddleston
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Southwest Marine, Inc. v. Byron Gizoni
- Union Bank v. Herbert Wolas
- Kenneth Hilton v. South Carolina Public Railways Commission
- Hunter v. Bryant
- Shirley M. Molzof v. United States
- Aletha Dewsnup v. Louis L. Timm
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