Alberto R. Gonzales, Attorney General, et al. v. Oregon, et al.

Decided January 17, 2006. Anthony McLeod Kennedy delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 04-623 · 546 U.S. 243 (2006) · Cited 632 times

Holding

The CSA does not allow the Attorney General to prohibit doctors from prescribing regulated drugs for use in physician-assisted suicide under state law permitting the procedure.

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 6–3.

“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.

• Gonzales v. Raich · 545 U.S. 1 (2005)
• Auer v. Robbins · 519 U.S. 452 (1997)
• United States v. Moore · 423 U.S. 122 (1975)
• Whitman v. American Trucking Assns., Inc. · 531 U.S. 457 (2001)
• Chevron U. S. A. Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. · 467 U.S. 837 (1984)
• Skidmore v. Swift & Co. · 323 U.S. 134 (1944)
• United States v. Mead Corp. · 533 U.S. 218 (2001)
• Washington v. Glucksberg · 521 U.S. 702 (1997)
• Sutton v. United Air Lines, Inc. · 527 U.S. 471 (1999)
• Gregory v. Ashcroft · 501 U.S. 452 (1991)
• Medtronic, Inc. v. Lohr · 518 U.S. 470 (1996)
• Food & Drug Administration v. Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. · 529 U.S. 120 (2000)
• Atascadero State Hospital v. Scanlon · 473 U.S. 234 (1985)
• Metropolitan Life Insurance v. Massachusetts · 471 U.S. 724 (1985)
• National Cable & Telecommunications Assn. v. Brand X Internet Services · 545 U.S. 967 (2005)
• Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians v. Holyfield · 490 U.S. 30 (1989)
• BFP v. Resolution Trust Corporation · 511 U.S. 531 (1994)
• Rush Prudential HMO, Inc. v. Moran · 536 U.S. 355 (2002)
• United States v. Sullivan · 332 U.S. 689 (1948)
• Household Credit Services, Inc. v. Pfennig · 541 U.S. 232 (2004)
• Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services, Inc. · 523 U.S. 75 (1998)
• Roper v. Simmons · 543 U.S. 551 (2005)
• H. J. Inc. v. Northwestern Bell Telephone Co. · 492 U.S. 229 (1989)
• Mistretta v. United States · 488 U.S. 361 (1989)
• Christensen v. Harris County · 529 U.S. 576 (2000)
• United States v. Bass · 404 U.S. 336 (1971)
• Bowles v. Seminole Rock & Sand Co. · 325 U.S. 410 (1945)
• Thomas Jefferson University v. Shalala · 512 U.S. 504 (1994)
• Hillsborough County v. Automated Medical Laboratories, Inc. · 471 U.S. 707 (1985)
• Gustafson v. Alloyd Co. · 513 U.S. 561 (1995)

Cited by

Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.

• City of Arlington v. Fed. Commc'ns Comm'n · 569 U.S. 290 (2013)
• West Virginia v. EPA · 597 U.S. 697 (2022)
• Kisor v. Wilkie · 588 U.S. 558 (2019)
• Xiulu Ruan v. United States · 597 U.S. 450 (2022)
• Biden v. Nebraska · 600 U.S. 477 (2023)
• Watters v. Wachovia Bank, N. A. · 550 U.S. 1 (2007)
• King v. Burwell · 576 U.S. 473 (2015)
• Federal Express Corp. v. Holowecki · 552 U.S. 389 (2008)
• United States v. Castleman · 572 U.S. 157 (2014)
• Perez v. Mortgage Bankers Assn. · 575 U.S. 92 (2015)
• Chase Bank USA, N. A. v. McCoy · 562 U.S. 195 (2011)
• McDonald v. City of Chicago · 561 U.S. 742 (2010)
• Rapanos v. United States · 547 U.S. 715 (2006)
• S. D. Warren Co. v. Maine Board of Environmental Protection · 547 U.S. 370 (2006)
• EPA v. Calumet Shreveport Refining, L.L.C. · 605 U.S. 627 (2025)
• Moyle v. United States · 603 U.S. 324 (2024)

Official text

Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2006). 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).