Joseph Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services, Incorporated, et al.

Decided March 4, 1998. Antonin Scalia delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 96-568 · 523 U.S. 75 (1998) · Cited 3,700 times

Holding

Sex discrimination consisting of same-sex sexual harassment is actionable under Title VII.

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.

• Harris v. Forklift Systems, Inc. · 510 U.S. 17 (1993)
• Johnson v. Transportation Agency, Santa Clara Cty. · 480 U.S. 616 (1987)
• Meritor Savings Bank, FSB v. Vinson · 477 U.S. 57 (1986)
• Castaneda v. Partida · 430 U.S. 482 (1977)
• Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co. v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission · 462 U.S. 669 (1983)

Cited by

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

• Bostock v. Clayton County · 590 U.S. 644 (2020)
• Vance v. Ball State Univ. · 570 U.S. 421 (2013)
• Faragher v. City of Boca Raton · 524 U.S. 775 (1998)
• General Dynamics Land Systems, Inc. v. Cline · 540 U.S. 581 (2004)
• Muldrow v. City of St. Louis · 601 U.S. 346 (2024)
• Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Co. v. White · 548 U.S. 53 (2006)
• Davis Ex Rel. LaShonda D. v. Monroe County Board of Education · 526 U.S. 629 (1999)
• Sutton v. United Air Lines, Inc. · 527 U.S. 471 (1999)
• Riegel v. Medtronic, Inc. · 552 U.S. 312 (2008)
• Irizarry v. United States · 553 U.S. 708 (2008)
• Nat'l Labor Relations Bd. v. SW Gen., Inc. · 580 U.S. 288 (2017)
• Fischer v. United States · 603 U.S. 480 (2024)
• National Railroad Passenger Corporation v. Morgan · 536 U.S. 101 (2002)
• Burlington Industries, Inc. v. Ellerth · 524 U.S. 742 (1998)
• Clark County School District v. Breeden · 532 U.S. 268 (2001)
• Food & Drug Administration v. Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. · 529 U.S. 120 (2000)
• Gebser v. Lago Vista Independent School District · 524 U.S. 274 (1998)
• Olmstead v. L.C. · 527 U.S. 581 (1999)
• Altria Group, Inc. v. Good · 555 U.S. 70 (2008)
• Gonzales v. Oregon · 546 U.S. 243 (2006)
• Graham County Soil & Water Conservation District v. United States Ex Rel. Wilson · 559 U.S. 280 (2010)
• Cooper Industries, Inc. v. Aviall Services, Inc. · 543 U.S. 157 (2004)
• Van Orden v. Perry · 545 U.S. 677 (2005)
• Lewis v. City of Chicago · 560 U.S. 205 (2010)
• DePierre v. United States · 564 U.S. 70 (2011)

Official text

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

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1998). 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).