Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. v. Lawrence Epstein
516 U.S. 367 · Decided February 27, 1996 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. v. Lawrence Epstein was decided on February 27, 1996 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Comity, removal cases and foreign tribunals” in the Judicial Power area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 516 U.S. 367 · 116 S. Ct. 873 · 134 L. Ed. 2d 6 · 1996 U.S. LEXIS 1550
- Docket number
- 94-1809
- Decided
- February 27, 1996
- Argued
- November 27, 1995
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Clarence Thomas
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Comity, removal cases and foreign tribunals
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Legal provision
- 28 U.S.C. § 1738
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated 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 | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Dissent | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority |
Full case caption
Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., et al. v. Lawrence Epstein, et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1995-027, docket 1995-027-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Comity, removal cases and foreign tribunals”
- Mary Anna Rivet v. Regions Bank of Louisiana
- William Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
- R. Gordon Darby v. Henry G. Cisneros
- William McNeil v. United States
- John J. McCarthy v. Larry Madigan
- Franchise Tax Board of California v. Alcan Aluminium Ltd.
Cases on the same legal provision: 28 U.S.C. § 1738
Same Term, same area (Judicial Power)
- Things Remembered, Inc. v. Anthony A. Petrarca
- Alexis Lawrence v. Shirley S. Chater
- Anthony Leo Stutson v. United States
- John W. Behrens v. Robert J. Pelletier
- Alan Meghrig v. KFC Western, Inc.
- United States v. Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company of Virginia
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