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New Orleans Public Service, Inc. v. Council of the City of New Orleans

491 U.S. 350 · Decided June 19, 1989 · 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

New Orleans Public Service, Inc. v. Council of the City of New Orleans was decided on June 19, 1989 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Antonin Scalia 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
491 U.S. 350 · 109 S. Ct. 2506 · 105 L. Ed. 2d 298 · 1989 U.S. LEXIS 3043
Docket number
88-348
Decided
June 19, 1989
Argued
April 25, 1989
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
Antonin Scalia
Opinion assigned by
William H. Rehnquist
How the case arrived
Certiorari
Issue area
Judicial Power
Legal provision
Abstention doctrine
Type of law
Other
Decision direction (SCDB)
Liberal what this means

How the Justices voted

JusticeVoteSeparate writing
Justice William J. Brennan Jr.ConcurrenceWrote an opinion
Justice Byron R. WhiteMajority
Justice Thurgood MarshallConcurrence
Justice Harry A. BlackmunSpecial concurrenceWrote an opinion
Chief Justice William H. RehnquistSpecial concurrenceWrote an opinion
Justice John Paul StevensMajority
Justice Sandra Day O'ConnorMajority
Justice Antonin ScaliaMajorityWrote an opinion
Justice Anthony M. KennedyMajority

Full case caption

New Orleans Public Service, Inc. v. Council of the City of New Orleans et al.

SCDB identifiers: case 1988-122, docket 1988-122-01.

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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