United States v. Orleans
425 U.S. 807 · Decided June 1, 1976 · 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. Orleans was decided on June 1, 1976 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice Warren E. Burger 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
- 425 U.S. 807 · 96 S. Ct. 1971 · 48 L. Ed. 2d 390 · 1976 U.S. LEXIS 118
- Docket number
- 75-328
- Decided
- June 1, 1976
- Argued
- March 22, 1976
- 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
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Warren E. Burger
- 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)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority |
Full case caption
United States v. Orleans et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1975-102, docket 1975-102-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- United States v. Hopkins
- Stencel Aero Engineering Corp. v. United States
- United States v. Reliable Transfer Co., Inc.Altered precedent
- Butz v. Economou
- Scheuer v. Rhodes
- Lake Country Estates, Inc. v. Tahoe Regional Planning Agency
Cases on the same legal provision: Federal Tort Claims Act or Alien Tort Statute
- United States v. Hohri
- Richards v. United States
- William McNeil v. United States
- United States v. Brown
- Gardner v. Panama Railroad Co.
- Hubsch v. United States
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Day & Zimmermann, Inc. v. Challoner
- Transamerican Freight Lines, Inc. v. Brada Miller Freight Systems, Inc.
- American Foreign Steamship Co. v. Matise
- Foremost-McKesson, Inc. v. Provident Securities Co.
- Michelin Tire Corp. v. WagesAltered precedent
- United States v. Bornstein
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