Paulsen et Ux. v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
469 U.S. 131 · Decided January 8, 1985 · 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
Paulsen et Ux. v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue was decided on January 8, 1985 by a vote of 6–2. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice William H. Rehnquist wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Federal taxation (Internal Revenue Code)” in the Federal Taxation area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 469 U.S. 131 · 105 S. Ct. 627 · 83 L. Ed. 2d 540 · 1985 U.S. LEXIS 31
- Docket number
- 83-832
- Decided
- January 8, 1985
- Argued
- October 29, 1984
- 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
- 6–2
- Majority opinion
- William H. Rehnquist
- Opinion assigned by
- William J. Brennan Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Federal taxation (Internal Revenue Code)
- Issue area
- Federal Taxation
- Legal provision
- Internal Revenue Code
- 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 | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Dissent | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
Did not participate: Lewis F. Powell Jr..
Full case caption
Paulsen et Ux. v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
SCDB identifiers: case 1984-012, docket 1984-012-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Federal taxation (Internal Revenue Code)”
- United States v. Boyle
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- United States v. National Bank of Commerce
- United States v. Arthur Young & Co.
- Badaracco v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
- Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Engle et Ux.
Cases on the same legal provision: Internal Revenue Code
- Dickman v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
- United States v. Hemme
- United States v. Rodgers
- Bob Jones University v. United StatesAltered precedent
- Jersey Shore State Bank v. United States
- Diedrich v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
Same Term, same area (Federal Taxation)
- United States v. Boyle
- Tiffany Fine Arts, Inc. v. United States
- United States v. National Bank of Commerce
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