James B. Beam Distilling Co. v. Georgia
501 U.S. 529 · Decided June 20, 1991 · 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
James B. Beam Distilling Co. v. Georgia was decided on June 20, 1991 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice David H. Souter wrote the opinion announcing the judgment of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “National supremacy, state tax” in the Federalism area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 501 U.S. 529 · 111 S. Ct. 2439 · 115 L. Ed. 2d 481 · 1991 U.S. LEXIS 3624
- Docket number
- 89-680
- Decided
- June 20, 1991
- Argued
- October 30, 1990
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Judgment of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- David H. Souter
- Opinion assigned by
- Byron R. White
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- National supremacy, state tax
- Issue area
- Federalism
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Byron R. White | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Dissent | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Dissent | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Judgment of the Court | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
James B. Beam Distilling Co. v. Georgia et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1990-116, docket 1990-116-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “National supremacy, state tax”
- Davis v. Michigan Department of the TreasuryLaw held unconstitutional
- Arizona Department of Revenue v. Blaze Construction Company, Inc.
- J. Elliott Hibbs v. Kathleen M. Winn
- United States Steel Corp. v. Multistate Tax Commission
- United States v. County of Fresno
- United States v. State Tax Commission of Mississippi
Same Term, same area (Federalism)
- United States of America v. State of Louisiana
- State of Mississippi v. United States
- FMC Corporation v. Cynthia Ann Holliday
- Ingersoll-Rand Company v. Perry McClendon
- Wisconsin Public Intervenor v. Ralph Mortier
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