United States v. S. A. Empresa de Viacao Aerea Rio Grandense
467 U.S. 797 · Decided June 19, 1984 · 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
United States v. S. A. Empresa de Viacao Aerea Rio Grandense was decided on June 19, 1984 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice Warren E. Burger 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
- 467 U.S. 797 · 104 S. Ct. 2755 · 81 L. Ed. 2d 660 · 1984 U.S. LEXIS 116
- Docket number
- 82-1349
- Decided
- June 19, 1984
- Argued
- January 18, 1984
- Court era
- Burger 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
- Warren E. Burger
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Governmental liability
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Federal Tort Claims Act or Alien Tort Statute
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority |
Full case caption
United States v. S. A. Empresa de Viacao Aerea Rio Grandense (Varig Airlines) et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1983-132, docket 1983-132-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- United States v. Morton
- Kosak v. United States
- United States v. Mitchell
- Mitchell v. Forsyth
- Chappell v. Wallace
- Bush v. Lucas
Cases on the same legal provision: Federal Tort Claims Act or Alien Tort Statute
- United States v. Hohri
- William McNeil v. United States
- Jose Francisco Sosa v. Humberto Alvarez-Machain
- United States v. Joseph Olson
- Richards v. United States
- United States v. Brown
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority v. Chesapeake & Potomac Telephone Company of Virginia
- Secretary of the Interior v. California
- Sony Corporation of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc.
- Daily Income Fund, Inc. v. Fox
- Southland Corp. v. Keating
- Dixson v. United States
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