Monsanto Company v. Geertson Seed Farms
561 U.S. 139 · Decided June 21, 2010 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Monsanto Company v. Geertson Seed Farms was decided on June 21, 2010 by a vote of 7–1. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Natural resources and environmental protection” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 561 U.S. 139 · 130 S. Ct. 2743 · 177 L. Ed. 2d 461 · 2010 U.S. LEXIS 4980
- Docket number
- 09-475
- Decided
- June 21, 2010
- Argued
- April 27, 2010
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–1
- Majority opinion
- Samuel A. Alito Jr.
- Opinion assigned by
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Natural resources and environmental protection
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- National Environmental Policy Act
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Majority |
Did not participate: Stephen G. Breyer.
Full case caption
Monsanto Company, et al. v. Geertson Seed Farms et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 2009-080, docket 2009-080-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Natural resources and environmental protection”
- State of Alabama v. State of North Carolina.
- Coeur Alaska, Inc. v. Southeast Alaska Conservation Council
- American Electric Power Company, Inc. v. Connecticut
- Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company v. United States
- Donald C. Winter v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc.
- PPL Montana, LLC v. Montana
Cases on the same legal provision: National Environmental Policy Act
- Weinberger v. Catholic Action of Hawaii/peace Education Project
- Strycker's Bay Neighborhood Council, Inc. v. Karlen
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- NRG Power Marketing, LLC v. Maine Public Utilities Commission
- Hemi Group, LLC and Kai Gachupin v. City of New York
- Mac's Shell Service, Inc. v. Shell Oil Products Co. LLC
- Reed Elsevier, Inc. v. Irvin Muchnick
- United Student Aid Funds, Inc. v. Francisco J. Espinosa
- Jerry N. Jones v. Harris Associates L. P.
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