Alan Meghrig, et al. v. Kfc Western, Inc.
Decided March 19, 1996. Sandra Day O'Connor delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 95-83 · 516 U.S. 479 (1996) · Cited 428 times
Holding
Section 6972 does not authorize a private cause of action to recover the prior cost of cleaning up toxic waste that does not, at the time of suit, continue to pose an endangerment to health or the environment.
The Court’s statement of the holding, from the opinion’s syllabus. The syllabus is prepared by the Reporter of Decisions and is not part of the opinion of the Court — read the official opinion for authority.
How the Justices voted
Decided 9–0.
Majority · 9
“Concurring” means agreeing with the outcome; any split shown is the Court’s judgment, not each Justice’s reasoning. Source: the Supreme Court Database (Spaeth et al.), Washington University.
Precedents cited
Supreme Court decisions this opinion relies on, ordered by how often it cites each. Cases in our collection link through; others are named.
- Middlesex County Sewerage Authority v. National Sea Clammers Assn. · 453 U.S. 1 (1981)
- Transamerica Mortgage Advisors, Inc. v. Lewis · 444 U.S. 11 (1979)
- Hecht Co. v. Bowles · 321 U.S. 321 (1944)
- Porter v. Warner Holding Co. · 328 U.S. 395 (1946)
- Hallstrom v. Tillamook County · 493 U.S. 20 (1989)
- Wyandotte Transportation Co. v. United States · 389 U.S. 191 (1967)
- City of Chicago v. Environmental Defense Fund · 511 U.S. 328 (1994)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- AMG Capital Management, LLC v. FTC · 593 U.S. 67 (2021)
- Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Co. v. United States · 556 U.S. 599 (2009)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
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Sandra Day O'Connor’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court
Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1996). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-07-03. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).