Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System v. Scott Harold Southworth, et al.

Decided March 22, 2000. Anthony McLeod Kennedy delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 98-1189 · 529 U.S. 217 (2000) · Cited 305 times

Holding

In a § 43(a) action for infringement of unregistered trade dress, a product’s design is distinctive, and therefore protectible, only upon a showing of secondary meaning.

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.

“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.

• Abood v. Detroit Board of Education · 431 U.S. 209 (1977)
• Keller v. State Bar of California · 496 U.S. 1 (1990)
• Rosenberger v. Rector & Visitors of University of Virginia · 515 U.S. 819 (1995)
• Sweezy v. New Hampshire Ex Rel. Wyman · 354 U.S. 234 (1957)
• Regents of the University of Michigan v. Ewing · 474 U.S. 214 (1985)
• Buckley v. Valeo · 424 U.S. 1 (1976)
• Rust v. Sullivan · 500 U.S. 173 (1991)
• PruneYard Shopping Center v. Robins · 447 U.S. 74 (1980)
• Regan v. Taxation With Representation of Washington · 461 U.S. 540 (1983)
• West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette · 319 U.S. 624 (1943)
• Shelton v. Tucker · 364 U.S. 479 (1960)
• Keyishian v. Board of Regents of Univ. of State of NY · 385 U.S. 589 (1967)
• Wooley v. Maynard · 430 U.S. 705 (1977)
• Wieman v. Updegraff · 344 U.S. 183 (1952)
• Lehnert v. Ferris Faculty Assn. · 500 U.S. 507 (1991)
• Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District · 393 U.S. 503 (1969)
• Widmar v. Vincent · 454 U.S. 263 (1981)
• Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier · 484 U.S. 260 (1988)
• Hurley v. Irish-American Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Group of Boston, Inc. · 515 U.S. 557 (1995)
• Bethel School District No. 403 v. Fraser · 478 U.S. 675 (1986)
• Lamb's Chapel v. Center Moriches Union Free School District · 508 U.S. 384 (1993)
• Miami Herald Publishing Co. v. Tornillo · 418 U.S. 241 (1974)
• National Endowment for the Arts v. Finley · 524 U.S. 569 (1998)

Cited by

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

• Christian Legal Soc. Chapter of Univ. of Cal., Hastings College of Law v. Martinez · 561 U.S. 661 (2010)
• Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe · 530 U.S. 290 (2000)
• Matal v. Tam · 582 U.S. 218 (2017)
• Johanns v. Livestock Marketing Assn. · 544 U.S. 550 (2005)
• Pleasant Grove City v. Summum · 555 U.S. 460 (2009)
• Walker v. Texas Div., Sons of Confederate Veterans, Inc. · 576 U.S. 200 (2015)
• United States v. United Foods, Inc. · 533 U.S. 405 (2001)
• United States v. American Library Assn., Inc. · 539 U.S. 194 (2003)
• Janus v. State, County, and Municipal Employees · 585 U.S. 878 (2018)
• Legal Services Corp. v. Velazquez · 531 U.S. 533 (2001)
• Amgen Inc. v. Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds · 568 U.S. 455 (2013)
• Shurtleff v. Boston · 596 U.S. 243 (2022)
• Cameron v. EMW Women's Surgical Center, P. S. C. · 595 U.S. 267 (2022)

Official text

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

Explore from here

Anthony McLeod Kennedy’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court

Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2000). 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).