Cooper Industries, Inc. v. Leatherman Tool Group, Inc.

Decided May 14, 2001. John Paul Stevens delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 99-2035 · 532 U.S. 424 (2001) · Cited 874 times

Holding

Courts of Appeals should apply a de novo standard when reviewing district court determinations of the constitutionality of punitive damages awards.

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 8–1.

“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.

• BMW of North America, Inc. v. Gore · 517 U.S. 559 (1996)
• Gasperini v. Center for Humanities, Inc. · 518 U.S. 415 (1996)
• United States v. Bajakajian · 524 U.S. 321 (1998)
• Browning-Ferris Industries of Vermont, Inc. v. Kelco Disposal, Inc. · 492 U.S. 257 (1989)
• Ornelas v. United States · 517 U.S. 690 (1996)
• Coker v. Georgia · 433 U.S. 584 (1977)
• Solem v. Helm · 463 U.S. 277 (1983)
• Pacific Mutual Life Insurance v. Haslip · 499 U.S. 1 (1991)
• Enmund v. Florida · 458 U.S. 782 (1982)
• Day v. Woodworth · 54 U.S. 363 (1852)
• TXO Production Corp. v. Alliance Resources Corp. · 509 U.S. 443 (1993)
• Honda Motor Co. v. Oberg · 512 U.S. 415 (1994)
• Apprendi v. New Jersey · 530 U.S. 466 (2000)
• Furman v. Georgia · 408 U.S. 238 (1972)
• Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc. · 418 U.S. 323 (1974)
• Koon v. United States · 518 U.S. 81 (1996)
• Byrd v. Blue Ridge Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc. · 356 U.S. 525 (1958)
• Schall v. Martin · 467 U.S. 253 (1984)

Cited by

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

• Philip Morris USA v. Williams · 549 U.S. 346 (2007)
• State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance v. Campbell · 538 U.S. 408 (2003)

Official text

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

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2001). 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).