CaseTrail

United States v. S. A. Empresa de Viacao Aerea Rio Grandense

467 U.S. 797 · Decided June 19, 1984 · 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. S. A. Empresa de Viacao Aerea Rio Grandense was decided on June 19, 1984 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
467 U.S. 797 · 104 S. Ct. 2755 · 81 L. Ed. 2d 660 · 1984 U.S. LEXIS 116
Docket number
82-1349
Decided
June 19, 1984
Argued
January 18, 1984
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
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

Full case caption

United States v. S. A. Empresa de Viacao Aerea Rio Grandense (Varig Airlines) et al.

SCDB identifiers: case 1983-132, docket 1983-132-01.

Other cases on “Governmental liability”

See all

Cases on the same legal provision: Federal Tort Claims Act or Alien Tort Statute

Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)

See all

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