Finley v. United States

Decided May 22, 1989. Antonin Scalia delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 87-1973 · 490 U.S. 545 (1989) · Cited 708 times

Holding

The text of the FTCA which provides in pertinent part that the federal district courts shall have jurisdiction over "civil actions on claims against the United States" defines jurisdiction in a manner that does not reach defendants other than the United States.

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 5–4.

“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.

• Aldinger v. Howard · 427 U.S. 1 (1976)
• United Mine Workers of America v. Gibbs · 383 U.S. 715 (1966)
• Owen Equipment & Erection Co. v. Kroger · 437 U.S. 365 (1978)
• United States v. Sherwood · 312 U.S. 584 (1941)
• Zahn v. International Paper Co. · 414 U.S. 291 (1973)
• Hurn v. Oursler · 289 U.S. 238 (1933)
• United States v. Yellow Cab Co. · 340 U.S. 543 (1951)
• Moore v. New York Cotton Exchange · 270 U.S. 593 (1926)
• Moor v. County of Alameda · 411 U.S. 693 (1973)
• Monroe v. Pape · 365 U.S. 167 (1961)
• Insurance Corp. of Ireland v. Compagnie Des Bauxites De Guinee · 456 U.S. 694 (1982)
• Verlinden B. v. v. Central Bank of Nigeria · 461 U.S. 480 (1983)
• Baltimore Steamship Co. v. Phillips · 274 U.S. 316 (1927)
• Krippendorf v. Hyde · 110 U.S. 276 (1884)
• Julian v. Central Trust Co. · 193 U.S. 93 (1904)
• McIntire v. Wood · 11 U.S. 504 (1813)
• Monell v. New York City Dept. of Social Servs. · 436 U.S. 658 (1978)
• Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital v. Mercury Construction Corp. · 460 U.S. 1 (1983)
• Carnegie-Mellon University v. Cohill · 484 U.S. 343 (1988)
• Pennhurst State School and Hospital v. Halderman · 465 U.S. 89 (1984)
• Hagans v. Lavine · 415 U.S. 528 (1974)
• Christianson v. Colt Industries Operating Corp. · 486 U.S. 800 (1988)
• Shamrock Oil & Gas Corp. v. Sheets · 313 U.S. 100 (1941)
• Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc. v. Thompson Ex Rel. Thompson · 478 U.S. 804 (1986)
• Sosna v. Iowa · 419 U.S. 393 (1975)
• Osborn v. Bank of United States · 22 U.S. 738 (1824)
• Local Loan Co. v. Hunt · 292 U.S. 234 (1934)
• Larson v. Domestic and Foreign Commerce Corp. · 337 U.S. 682 (1949)
• Rosado v. Wyman · 397 U.S. 397 (1970)
• Firestone Tire & Rubber Co. v. Risjord · 449 U.S. 368 (1981)

Cited by

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

• Exxon Mobil Corp. v. Allapattah Services, Inc. · 545 U.S. 546 (2005)
• Raygor v. Regents of the University of Minnesota · 534 U.S. 533 (2002)
• Ankenbrandt Ex Rel. L. R. v. Richards · 504 U.S. 689 (1992)
• City of Chicago v. International College of Surgeons · 522 U.S. 156 (1997)
• DaimlerChrysler Corp. v. Cuno · 547 U.S. 332 (2006)
• Hoffmann-La Roche Inc. v. Sperling · 493 U.S. 165 (1989)
• Keene Corp. v. United States · 508 U.S. 200 (1993)
• Lexecon Inc. v. Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach · 523 U.S. 26 (1998)
• Hoffman v. Connecticut Department of Income Maintenance · 492 U.S. 96 (1989)
• Ngiraingas v. Sanchez · 495 U.S. 182 (1990)

Official text

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

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1989). 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).