Jill S. Kamen v. Kemper Financial Services, Inc., et al.

Decided May 20, 1991. Thurgood Marshall delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 90-516 · 500 U.S. 90 (1991) · Cited 1,291 times

Holding

A court entertaining a derivative action under the ICA must apply the demand futility exception as it is defined by the law of the State of incorporation.

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 9–0.

“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.

• Burks v. Lasker · 441 U.S. 471 (1979)
• Daily Income Fund, Inc. v. Fox · 464 U.S. 523 (1984)
• Cohen v. Beneficial Industrial Loan Corp. · 337 U.S. 541 (1949)
• Hawes v. Oakland · 104 U.S. 450 (1882)
• United States v. Kimbell Foods, Inc. · 440 U.S. 715 (1979)
• Ross v. Bernhard · 396 U.S. 531 (1970)
• Erie Railroad v. Tompkins · 304 U.S. 64 (1938)
• Singleton v. Wulff · 428 U.S. 106 (1976)
• Cort v. Ash · 422 U.S. 66 (1975)
• DelCostello v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters · 462 U.S. 151 (1983)
• Hanna v. Plumer · 380 U.S. 460 (1965)
• Johnson v. Railway Express Agency, Inc. · 421 U.S. 454 (1975)
• Boyle v. United Technologies Corp. · 487 U.S. 500 (1988)
• United Parcel Service, Inc. v. Mitchell · 451 U.S. 56 (1981)
• Bowen v. Johnston · 306 U.S. 19 (1939)
• Smith v. Sperling · 354 U.S. 91 (1957)
• De Sylva v. Ballentine · 351 U.S. 570 (1956)
• Sola Electric Co. v. Jefferson Electric Co. · 317 U.S. 173 (1942)
• United States v. National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. · 422 U.S. 694 (1975)
• Reconstruction Finance Corporation v. Beaver County · 328 U.S. 204 (1946)
• Lámar v. Micou · 114 U.S. 218 (1885)
• Corbus v. Alaska Treadwell Gold Mining Co. · 187 U.S. 455 (1903)

Cited by

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

• O'Melveny & Myers v. Federal Deposit Insurance · 512 U.S. 79 (1994)
• Atherton v. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. · 519 U.S. 213 (1997)
• Doggett v. United States · 505 U.S. 647 (1992)
• United Student Aid Funds, Inc. v. Espinosa · 559 U.S. 260 (2010)
• United States National Bank v. Independent Insurance Agents of America, Inc. · 508 U.S. 439 (1993)
• Bray v. Alexandria Women's Health Clinic · 506 U.S. 263 (1993)
• Schaffer Ex Rel. Schaffer v. Weast · 546 U.S. 49 (2005)
• Monge v. California · 524 U.S. 721 (1998)
• Lebron v. National Railroad Passenger Corporation · 513 U.S. 374 (1995)
• Chamber of Commerce of United States of America v. Whiting · 563 U.S. 582 (2011)
• Catholic Charities Bureau, Inc. v. Wisconsin Labor and Industry Review Comm'n. · 605 U.S. 238 (2025)

Official text

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

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1991). 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).