John J. McCarthy v. Larry Madigan
503 U.S. 140 · Decided March 4, 1992 · 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
John J. McCarthy v. Larry Madigan was decided on March 4, 1992 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Harry A. Blackmun wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Comity, removal cases and foreign tribunals” in the Judicial Power area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 503 U.S. 140 · 112 S. Ct. 1081 · 117 L. Ed. 2d 291 · 1992 U.S. LEXIS 1524
- Docket number
- 90-6861
- Decided
- March 4, 1992
- Argued
- December 9, 1991
- 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
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Harry A. Blackmun
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Comity, removal cases and foreign tribunals
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Special concurrence |
Full case caption
John J. McCarthy v. Larry Madigan, et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1991-040, docket 1991-040-01.
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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