United States v. Shearer
473 U.S. 52 · Decided June 27, 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
United States v. Shearer was decided on June 27, 1985 unanimously (8–0). 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
- 473 U.S. 52 · 105 S. Ct. 3039 · 87 L. Ed. 2d 38 · 1985 U.S. LEXIS 82
- Docket number
- 84-194
- Decided
- June 27, 1985
- Argued
- February 25, 1985
- 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
- 8–0 (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)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Special concurrence | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority |
Did not participate: Lewis F. Powell Jr..
Full case caption
United States v. Shearer, Individually and as Administratrix for the Estate of Shearer
SCDB identifiers: case 1984-147, docket 1984-147-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- Mitchell v. Forsyth
- Cleavinger v. Saxner
- United States v. James
- United States v. S. A. Empresa de Viacao Aerea Rio Grandense
- United States v. Morton
- Kosak v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: Federal Tort Claims Act or Alien Tort Statute
- United States v. Hohri
- William McNeil v. United States
- 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)
- Mills Music, Inc. v. Snyder
- Park 'n Fly, Inc. v. Dollar Park and Fly, Inc.
- Ohio v. Kovacs
- Chemical Manufacturers Association v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc.
- Dean Witter Reynolds Inc. v. Byrd
- Air France v. Saks
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