United States v. Gaubert
499 U.S. 315 · Decided March 26, 1991 · 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
United States v. Gaubert was decided on March 26, 1991 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Byron R. White 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
- 499 U.S. 315 · 111 S. Ct. 1267 · 113 L. Ed. 2d 335 · 1991 U.S. LEXIS 1853
- Docket number
- 89-1793
- Decided
- March 26, 1991
- Argued
- November 26, 1990
- 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
- Byron R. White
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- 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 Byron R. White | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| 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 | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority |
Full case caption
United States v. Gaubert
SCDB identifiers: case 1990-053, docket 1990-053-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- United States v. Marcus S. Smith
- Frederick A. Siegert v. H. Melvin Gilley
- Edgar Blatchford v. Native Village of Noatak and Circle Village
- Kenneth Hilton v. South Carolina Public Railways Commission
- Hunter v. Bryant
- Office of Personnel Management v. Charles Richmond
Cases on the same legal provision: Federal Tort Claims Act or Alien Tort Statute
- William McNeil v. United States
- United States v. Hohri
- 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)
- Mercedel W. Miles v. Apex Marine Corporation
- Jay Palmer v. BRG of Georgia, Inc.
- Arcadia v. Ohio Power Company
- Coy R. Grogan v. Frank J. Garner, Jr.
- McDermott International, Inc. v. Jon C. Wilander
- Trinova Corporation v. Michigan Department of Treasury
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