Costco Wholesale Corporation v. Omega, S.A.
562 U.S. 40 · Decided December 13, 2010 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Costco Wholesale Corporation v. Omega, S.A. was decided on December 13, 2010 by a vote of 4–4. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. The Justices were equally divided, which leaves the lower court's judgment in place without setting precedent. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Copyrights” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 562 U.S. 40 · 131 S. Ct. 565 · 178 L. Ed. 2d 470 · 2010 U.S. LEXIS 9597
- Docket number
- 08-1423
- Decided
- December 13, 2010
- Argued
- November 8, 2010
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Equally divided vote
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 4–4
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Copyrights
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Type of law
- No legal provision
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Equally divided vote | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Equally divided vote | |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Equally divided vote |
Did not participate: Elena Kagan.
Full case caption
Costco Wholesale Corporation, Petitioner v. Omega, S.A.
SCDB identifiers: case 2010-004, docket 2010-004-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Copyrights”
- Reed Elsevier, Inc. v. Irvin Muchnick
- Lawrence Golan v. Eric H. Holder, Jr.
- Supap Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
- Petrella v. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc.
- American Broadcasting Cos. v. Aereo, Inc.
- Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd.
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Jason M. Ransom v. Fia Card Services, N.A.
- Chase Bank USA, Na. v. James A. McCoy
- CSX Transportation, Inc. v. Alabama Department of Revenue
- Matrixx Initiatives, Inc. v. James Siracusano
- AT&T Mobility LLC v. Vincent Concepcion
- Cigna Corporation v. Janice C. Amara
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