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Donald Saucier v. Elliot M. Katz and in Defense of Animals

533 U.S. 194 · Decided June 18, 2001 · 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

Donald Saucier v. Elliot M. Katz and in Defense of Animals was decided on June 18, 2001 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy 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
533 U.S. 194 · 121 S. Ct. 2151 · 150 L. Ed. 2d 272 · 2001 U.S. LEXIS 4664
Docket number
99-1977
Decided
June 18, 2001
Argued
March 20, 2001
Decision type
Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
Disposition
Reversed and remanded
Outcome for petitioner
The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
Vote
9–0 (unanimous)
Majority opinion
Anthony M. Kennedy
Opinion assigned by
William H. Rehnquist
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Decision direction (SCDB)
Liberal what this means

How the Justices voted

JusticeVoteSeparate writing
Chief Justice William H. RehnquistMajority
Justice John Paul StevensSpecial concurrence
Justice Sandra Day O'ConnorMajority
Justice Antonin ScaliaMajority
Justice Anthony M. KennedyMajorityWrote an opinion
Justice David H. SouterSpecial concurrenceWrote an opinion
Justice Clarence ThomasMajority
Justice Ruth Bader GinsburgSpecial concurrenceWrote an opinion
Justice Stephen G. BreyerSpecial concurrence

Full case caption

Donald Saucier v. Elliot M. Katz and in Defense of Animals

SCDB identifiers: case 2000-075, docket 2000-075-01.

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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