Hoffmann-La Roche Inc. v. Richard Sperling et al.
Decided December 11, 1989. Anthony McLeod Kennedy delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 88-1203 · 493 U.S. 165 (1989) · Cited 1,715 times
Holding
District courts have discretion, in appropriate cases, to implement 216(b), as incorporated by 626(b), in ADEA actions by facilitating notice to potential plaintiffs.
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 7–2.
Majority · 7
- Anthony McLeod Kennedy · delivered the opinion of the Court
- Byron Raymond White
- Harry Andrew Blackmun
- John Paul Stevens
- Sandra Day O'Connor
- Thurgood Marshall
- William Joseph Brennan Jr.
Dissenting · 2
- Antonin Scalia · filed a dissenting opinion
- William Hubbs Rehnquist
“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.
- Gulf Oil Co. v. Bernard · 452 U.S. 89 (1981)
- Link v. Wabash Railroad · 370 U.S. 626 (1962)
- Owen Equipment & Erection Co. v. Kroger · 437 U.S. 365 (1978)
- Osborn v. Bank of United States · 22 U.S. 738 (1824)
- Muskrat v. United States · 219 U.S. 346 (1911)
- Finley v. United States · 490 U.S. 545 (1989)
- United States v. Ferreira · 54 U.S. 40 (1852)
- Shapero v. Kentucky Bar Assn. · 486 U.S. 466 (1988)
- Gordon v. United States · 117 U.S. 697 (1864)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Genesis HealthCare Corp. v. Symczyk · 569 U.S. 66 (2013)
- Tyson Foods, Inc. v. Bouaphakeo · 577 U.S. 442 (2016)
- Kimel v. Florida Board of Regents · 528 U.S. 62 (2000)
- United States v. Kwai Fun Wong · 575 U.S. 402 (2015)
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).