Lisa Watson, et al. v. Philip Morris Companies, Inc., et al.
Decided June 11, 2007. Stephen Gerald Breyer delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 05-1284 · 551 U.S. 142 (2007) · Cited 584 times
Holding
The fact that a federal agency directs, supervises, and monitors a company’s activities in considerable detail does not bring that company within § 1442(a)(1)’s scope and thereby permit removal.
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.
Majority · 9
“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.
- Willingham v. Morgan · 395 U.S. 402 (1969)
- Maryland v. Soper, Judge · 270 U.S. 9 (1926)
- Arizona v. Manypenny · 451 U.S. 232 (1981)
- Tennessee v. Davis · 100 U.S. 257 (1880)
- City of Greenwood v. Peacock · 384 U.S. 808 (1966)
- International Primate Protection League v. Administrators of Tulane Educational Fund · 500 U.S. 72 (1991)
- Mesa v. California · 489 U.S. 121 (1989)
- Jefferson County v. Acker · 527 U.S. 423 (1999)
- Colorado v. Symes · 286 U.S. 510 (1932)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
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Stephen Gerald Breyer’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court
Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2007). 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).