Welch v. Texas Department of Highways and Public Transportation

483 U.S. 468 · Decided June 25, 1987 · Supreme Court of the United States

At a glance

Welch v. Texas Department of Highways and Public Transportation was decided on June 25, 1987 by a vote of 5–4. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. wrote the opinion announcing the judgment of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Governmental liability” in the Economic Activity area. SCDB codes this decision as formally altering one or more of the Court's own precedents.

Read the opinion

• CourtListener (Free Law Project) — opinion text
• Library of Congress — official U.S. Reports scan

Case details

How the Justices voted

Full case caption

Welch v. Texas Department of Highways and Public Transportation, et al.

SCDB identifiers: case 1986-154, docket 1986-154-01.

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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