Kewanee Oil Co. v. Bicron Corp. et al.

Decided May 13, 1974. Warren Earl Burger delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 73-187 · 416 U.S. 470 (1974) · Cited 566 times

Holding

Ohio's trade secret law is not pre-empted by the federal patent laws.

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 6–2.

“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.

• Goldstein v. California · 412 U.S. 546 (1973)
• Lear, Inc. v. Adkins · 395 U.S. 653 (1969)
• Sears, Roebuck & Co. v. Stiffel Co. · 376 U.S. 225 (1964)
• Universal Oil Products Co. v. Globe Oil & Refining Co. · 322 U.S. 471 (1944)
• Florida Lime & Avocado Growers, Inc. v. Paul · 373 U.S. 132 (1963)
• Compco Corp. v. Day-Brite Lighting, Inc. · 376 U.S. 234 (1964)
• United States v. Dubilier Condenser Corp · 289 U.S. 178 (1933)
• E. I. Du Pont De Nemours Powder Co. v. Masland · 244 U.S. 100 (1917)
• Graham v. John Deere Co. of Kansas City · 383 U.S. 1 (1966)
• Hines v. Davidowitz · 312 U.S. 52 (1941)
• International News Service v. Associated Press · 248 U.S. 215 (1919)
• Sola Electric Co. v. Jefferson Electric Co. · 317 U.S. 173 (1942)
• Baker v. Selden · 101 U.S. 99 (1880)
• Board of Trade of Chicago v. Christie Grain & Stock Co. · 198 U.S. 236 (1905)
• Becher v. Contoure Laboratories, Inc. · 279 U.S. 388 (1929)
• Kendall v. Winsor · 62 U.S. 322 (1859)

Cited by

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

• Bonito Boats, Inc. v. Thunder Craft Boats, Inc. · 489 U.S. 141 (1989)
• Zacchini v. Scripps-Howard Broadcasting Co. · 433 U.S. 562 (1977)
• Aronson v. Quick Point Pencil Co. · 440 U.S. 257 (1979)
• Diamond v. Chakrabarty · 447 U.S. 303 (1980)
• J. E. M. Ag Supply, Inc. v. Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. · 534 U.S. 124 (2001)
• Ruckelshaus v. Monsanto Co. · 467 U.S. 986 (1984)
• Tyler Pipe Industries, Inc. v. Washington State Department of Revenue · 483 U.S. 232 (1987)
• Eldred v. Ashcroft · 537 U.S. 186 (2003)

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 (1974). 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).