United States v. Kubrick
444 U.S. 111 · Decided November 28, 1979 · 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. Kubrick was decided on November 28, 1979 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. 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
- 444 U.S. 111 · 100 S. Ct. 352 · 62 L. Ed. 2d 259 · 1979 U.S. LEXIS 152
- Docket number
- 78-1014
- Decided
- November 28, 1979
- Argued
- October 3, 1979
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Byron R. White
- 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. | Dissent | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| 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 |
Full case caption
United States v. Kubrick
SCDB identifiers: case 1979-008, docket 1979-008-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- Hatzlachh Supply Co., Inc. v. United States
- United States v. Mitchell
- Carlson v. Green
- Lake Country Estates, Inc. v. Tahoe Regional Planning Agency
- Nevada v. Hall
- Butz v. Economou
Cases on the same legal provision: Federal Tort Claims Act or Alien Tort Statute
- United States v. Hohri
- William McNeil v. United States
- Richards v. United States
- Jose Francisco Sosa v. Humberto Alvarez-Machain
- United States v. Brown
- United States v. Joseph Olson
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Transamerica Mortgage Advisors, Inc. v. Lewis
- P. C. Pfeiffer Co., Inc. v. Ford
- Ferri v. Ackerman
- McLain v. Real Estate Board of New Orleans, Inc.
- Hatzlachh Supply Co., Inc. v. United States
- Norfolk & Western Railway Co. v. Liepelt
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