Estate of Thornton et al. v. Caldor, Inc.
Decided June 26, 1985. Warren Earl Burger delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 83-1158 · 472 U.S. 703 (1985) · Cited 222 times
Holding
The Connecticut statute, by providing Sabbath observers with an absolute and unqualified right not to work on their chosen Sabbath, violates the Establishment Clause.
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.
Majority · 6
- Warren Earl Burger · delivered the opinion of the Court
- Byron Raymond White
- Harry Andrew Blackmun
- John Paul Stevens
- Lewis Franklin Powell Jr.
- William Joseph Brennan Jr.
Concurring · 2
- Sandra Day O'Connor · filed a concurring opinion
- Thurgood Marshall
Dissenting · 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.
- Lemon v. Kurtzman · 403 U.S. 602 (1971)
- Brown v. Ohio · 432 U.S. 161 (1977)
- Trans World Airlines, Inc. v. Hardison · 432 U.S. 63 (1977)
- Board of Ed. of Central School Dist. No. 1 v. Allen · 392 U.S. 236 (1968)
- Garner v. Louisiana · 368 U.S. 157 (1961)
- Roemer v. Board of Public Works of Md. · 426 U.S. 736 (1976)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Cutter v. Wilkinson · 544 U.S. 709 (2005)
- Espinoza v. Montana Dept. of Revenue · 591 U.S. 464 (2020)
- County of Allegheny v. American Civil Liberties Union · 492 U.S. 573 (1989)
- Bowen v. Kendrick · 487 U.S. 589 (1988)
- Hobbie v. Unemployment Appeals Comm'n of Fla. · 480 U.S. 136 (1987)
- Board of Ed. of Kiryas Joel Village School Dist. v. Grumet · 512 U.S. 687 (1994)
- Texas Monthly, Inc. v. Bullock · 489 U.S. 1 (1989)
- United States v. Taylor · 596 U.S. 845 (2022)
- Corporation of the Presiding Bishop of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v. Amos · 483 U.S. 327 (1987)
- Van Orden v. Perry · 545 U.S. 677 (2005)
- Aguilar v. Felton · 473 U.S. 402 (1985)
- Whole Woman's Health v. Jackson · 595 U.S. 30 (2021)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
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Warren Earl Burger’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court
Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1985). 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).