Northern Insurance Company of New York v. Chatham County
547 U.S. 189 · Decided April 25, 2006 · 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
Northern Insurance Company of New York v. Chatham County was decided on April 25, 2006 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 “Governmental liability” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 547 U.S. 189 · 126 S. Ct. 1689 · 164 L. Ed. 2d 367 · 2006 U.S. LEXIS 3449
- Docket number
- 04-1618
- Decided
- April 25, 2006
- Argued
- March 1, 2006
- Court era
- Roberts 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
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Governmental liability
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Eleventh Amendment
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice John Paul Stevens | 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 | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Majority |
Full case caption
Northern Insurance Company of New York v. Chatham County, Georgia
SCDB identifiers: case 2005-046, docket 2005-046-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- Barbara Dolan v. United States Postal Service
- Ministry of Defense and Support for the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran v. Dariush Elahi
- George J. Tenet v. John Doe
- Charles Wilkie v. Harvey Frank Robbins
- Rochelle Brosseau v. Kenneth J. Haugen
- Abdus-Shahid M. S. Ali v. Federal Bureau of Prisons
Cases on the same legal provision: Eleventh Amendment
- Tennessee Student Assistance Corporation v. Pamela L. Hood
- Linda Frew v. Albert Hawkins
- Federal Maritime Commission v. South Carolina State Ports Authority
- Paul D. Lapides v. Board of Regents of the University System of GeorgiaAltered precedent
- Virginia Office for Protection and Advocacy v. James W. Stewart III
- Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama v. Patricia GarrettLaw held unconstitutional
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- United States v. Joseph Olson
- Volvo Trucks North America, Inc. v. Reeder-Simco GMC, Inc.
- Buckeye Check Cashing, Inc. v. John Cardegna
- Ministry of Defense and Support for the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran v. Dariush Elahi
- Barbara Dolan v. United States Postal Service
- Texaco Inc. v. Fouad N. Dagher
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