Kosak v. United States
465 U.S. 848 · Decided March 21, 1984 · 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
Kosak v. United States was decided on March 21, 1984 by a vote of 8–1. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Thurgood Marshall 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
- 465 U.S. 848 · 104 S. Ct. 1519 · 79 L. Ed. 2d 860 · 1984 U.S. LEXIS 45
- Docket number
- 82-618
- Decided
- March 21, 1984
- Argued
- November 7, 1983
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–1
- Majority opinion
- Thurgood Marshall
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- 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. | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority |
Full case caption
Kosak v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1983-056, docket 1983-056-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- United States v. S. A. Empresa de Viacao Aerea Rio Grandense
- United States v. Morton
- United States v. Mitchell
- Chappell v. Wallace
- Bush v. Lucas
- Block v. Neal
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)
- Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority v. Chesapeake & Potomac Telephone Company of Virginia
- Secretary of the Interior v. California
- Sony Corporation of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc.
- Daily Income Fund, Inc. v. Fox
- Southland Corp. v. Keating
- Dixson v. United States
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