Hughes Aircraft Company v. Stanley I. Jacobson
525 U.S. 432 · Decided January 25, 1999 · 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
Hughes Aircraft Company v. Stanley I. Jacobson was decided on January 25, 1999 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Employee Retirement Income Security Act” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 525 U.S. 432 · 119 S. Ct. 755 · 142 L. Ed. 2d 881 · 1999 U.S. LEXIS 753
- Docket number
- 97-1287
- Decided
- January 25, 1999
- Argued
- November 2, 1998
- Court era
- Rehnquist 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
- Clarence Thomas
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Employee Retirement Income Security Act
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority |
Full case caption
Hughes Aircraft Company, et al. v. Stanley I. Jacobson et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1998-021, docket 1998-021-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Employee Retirement Income Security Act”
- Unum Life Insurance Company of America v. John E. Ward
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Cases on the same legal provision: Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)
- Barbara A. de Buono v. Nysa-Ila Medical and Clinical Services Fund, Etc.
- Sandra Jean Dale Boggs v. Thomas F. Boggs
- California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement v. Dillingham Construction, N. A., Inc.
- Donna Rae Egelhoff v. Samantha Egelhoff
- Rush Prudential HMO, Inc. v. Debra C. Moran
- New York State Conference of Blue Cross & Blue Shield Plans v. Travelers Insurance Company
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Wayne K. Pfaff v. Wells Electronics, Inc.
- Nynex Corporation v. Discon
- El Al Israel Airlines, Ltd. v. Tsui Yuan Tseng
- Jane M. Roberts v. Galen of Virginia, Inc.
- Department of the Army v. Blue Fox, Inc.
- AT&T Corporation v. Iowa Utilities Board
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