Domino'S Pizza, Inc., et al. v. John McDonald

Decided February 22, 2006. Antonin Scalia delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 04-593 · 546 U.S. 470 (2006) · Cited 573 times

Holding

Consistent with this Court’s case law, and as required by the statute’s plain text, a plaintiff cannot state a §1981 claim unless he has (or would have) rights under the existing (or proposed) contract that he wishes “to make and enforce.” The statute, originally enacted as §1 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, now protects the equal right of “ll persons” to “make and enforce contracts” without respect to race, §1981(a), and defines “make and enforce contracts” to “includ the making, performance, modification, and termination of contracts, and the enjoyment of all benefits .

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 8–0.

“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.

• Patterson v. McLean Credit Union · 491 U.S. 164 (1989)
• Singleton v. Wulff · 428 U.S. 106 (1976)
• Runyon v. McCrary · 427 U.S. 160 (1976)
• Blessing v. Freestone · 520 U.S. 329 (1997)
• General Building Contractors Assn., Inc. v. Pennsylvania · 458 U.S. 375 (1982)
• Jones v. R. R. Donnelley & Sons Co. · 541 U.S. 369 (2004)
• United States v. Verdugo-Urquidez · 494 U.S. 259 (1990)
• Goodman v. Lukens Steel Co. · 482 U.S. 656 (1987)
• Burnett v. Grattan · 468 U.S. 42 (1984)
• Shaare Tefila Congregation v. Cobb · 481 U.S. 615 (1987)

Cited by

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

• CBOCS West, Inc. v. Humphries · 553 U.S. 442 (2008)

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).