Cassirer v. Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection Foundation

Decided April 21, 2022. Elena Kagan delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 20-1566 · 596 U.S. 107 (2022) · Cited 54 times

Holding

In a suit raising non-federal claims against a foreign state or instrumentality under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976, a court should determine the substantive law by using the same choice-of-law rule applicable in a similar suit against a private party.

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. The lineup is the syllabus’s disposition of who wrote and joined each opinion. Source: the opinion’s syllabus (supremecourt.gov).

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.

• First National City Bank v. Banco Para El Comercio Exterior De Cuba · 462 U.S. 611 (1983)
• Klaxon Co. v. Stentor Electric Manufacturing Co. · 313 U.S. 487 (1941)
• Texas Industries, Inc. v. Radcliff Materials, Inc. · 451 U.S. 630 (1981)
• United States v. Detroit Timber & Lumber Co. · 200 U.S. 321 (1906)

Official text

Read the official opinion (PDF, supremecourt.gov)

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Elena Kagan’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court

Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2022). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-08-15. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).