International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers v. Hechler
481 U.S. 851 · Decided May 26, 1987 · 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
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers v. Hechler was decided on May 26, 1987 unanimously (9–0). The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Harry A. Blackmun 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
- 481 U.S. 851 · 107 S. Ct. 2161 · 95 L. Ed. 2d 791 · 1987 U.S. LEXIS 2260
- Docket number
- 85-1360
- Decided
- May 26, 1987
- Argued
- January 20, 1987
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Vacated and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Harry A. Blackmun
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Federal preemption of state court jurisdiction
- Issue area
- Federalism
- Legal provision
- Labor-Management Relations Act
- 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 Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority |
Full case caption
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, AFL-CIO, et al. v. Hechler
SCDB identifiers: case 1986-106, docket 1986-106-01.
Related decisions
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- Lingle v. Norge Division of Magic Chef, Inc.
- Oklahoma Tax Commission v. Graham
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Cases on the same legal provision: Labor-Management Relations Act
- Lynn L. Breininger v. Sheet Metal Workers International Association Local Union No. 6
- Arthur Groves v. Ring Screw Works
- Jim McNeff, Inc. v. Todd
- Summit Valley Industries, Inc. v. Local 112
- United Mine Workers of America Health & Retirement Funds v. Robinson
- National Labor Relations Board v. Amax Coal Co.
Same Term, same area (Federalism)
- Rose v. Arkansas State PoliceLaw held unconstitutional
- West Virginia v. United States
- International Paper Co. v. Ouellette
- Pilot Life Insurance Co. v. Dedeaux
- Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. v. Taylor
- Rose v. Rose
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