Luther R. Campbell aka Luke Skyywalker v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc.
510 U.S. 569 · Decided March 7, 1994 · 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
Luther R. Campbell aka Luke Skyywalker v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc. was decided on March 7, 1994 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice David H. Souter wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Copyrights” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 510 U.S. 569 · 114 S. Ct. 1164 · 127 L. Ed. 2d 500 · 1994 U.S. LEXIS 2052
- Docket number
- 92-1292
- Decided
- March 7, 1994
- Argued
- November 9, 1993
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- David H. Souter
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Copyrights
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- 17 U.S.C. § 107
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority |
Full case caption
Luther R. Campbell aka Luke Skyywalker, et al. v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc.
SCDB identifiers: case 1993-029, docket 1993-029-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Copyrights”
- Lotus Development Corporation v. Borland International, Inc.
- Feist Publications, Inc. v. Rural Telephone Service Co., Inc.
- Stewart v. Abend
- Quality King Distributors, Inc. v. L'Anza Research International, Inc.
- C. Elvin Feltner, Jr. v. Columbia Pictures Television, Inc.Law held unconstitutional
- Community for Creative Non-Violence v. Reid
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company v. Harris Trust and Savings Bank
- Department of Revenue of Oregon v. Acf Industries, Inc.
- Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation v. John H. Meyer
- Oregon Waste Systems, Inc. v. Department of Environmental Quality of the State of OregonLaw held unconstitutional
- Central Bank of Denver, N. A. v. First Interstate Bank of Denver, N. A. and Jack K. Naber
- McDermott, Inc. v. Amclyde and River Don Castings Ltd.
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