Martin et al. v. Wilks et al.

Decided June 12, 1989. William Hubbs Rehnquist delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 87-1614 · 490 U.S. 755 (1989) · Cited 565 times

Holding

Respondents are not precluded from challenging the employment decisions taken pursuant to the consent decrees.

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 5–4.

“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.

• Local 28 of the Sheet Metal Workers' International Ass'n v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission · 478 U.S. 421 (1986)
• Local Number 93, International Ass'n of Firefighters v. City of Cleveland · 478 U.S. 501 (1986)
• Provident Tradesmens Bank & Trust Co. v. Patterson · 390 U.S. 102 (1968)
• W. R. Grace & Co. v. Local Union 759, International Union of the United Rubber, Cork, Linoleum & Plastic Workers · 461 U.S. 757 (1983)
• Wygant v. Jackson Board of Education · 476 U.S. 267 (1986)
• Penn-Central Merger & N & W Inclusion Cases · 389 U.S. 486 (1968)
• United Steelworkers of America v. Weber · 443 U.S. 193 (1979)
• Milliken v. Bradley · 418 U.S. 717 (1974)
• Walker v. City of Birmingham · 388 U.S. 307 (1967)
• Firefighters Local Union No. 1784 v. Stotts · 467 U.S. 561 (1984)
• Chase National Bank v. City of Norwalk · 291 U.S. 431 (1934)
• United States v. Frady · 456 U.S. 152 (1982)
• Parklane Hosiery Co. v. Shore · 439 U.S. 322 (1979)
• Blonder-Tongue Laboratories, Inc. v. University of Illinois Foundation · 402 U.S. 313 (1971)
• Zenith Radio Corp. v. Hazeltine Research, Inc. · 395 U.S. 100 (1969)
• Hansberry v. Lee · 311 U.S. 32 (1940)
• Texas Department of Community Affairs v. Burdine · 450 U.S. 248 (1981)
• United States v. Leon · 468 U.S. 897 (1984)
• District of Columbia Court of Appeals v. Feldman · 460 U.S. 462 (1983)
• Malley v. Briggs · 475 U.S. 335 (1986)
• Teague v. Lane · 489 U.S. 288 (1989)
• Rooker v. Fidelity Trust Co. · 263 U.S. 413 (1924)
• United States v. Ross · 456 U.S. 798 (1982)
• Montana v. United States · 440 U.S. 147 (1979)
• Insurance Corp. of Ireland v. Compagnie Des Bauxites De Guinee · 456 U.S. 694 (1982)
• United States v. United Mine Workers of America · 330 U.S. 258 (1947)
• Liljeberg v. Health Services Acquisition Corp. · 486 U.S. 847 (1988)
• Ackermann v. United States · 340 U.S. 193 (1950)
• Klapprott v. United States · 335 U.S. 601 (1949)
• National Labor Relations Board v. Bildisco & Bildisco · 465 U.S. 513 (1984)

Cited by

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

• Taylor v. Sturgell · 553 U.S. 880 (2008)
• Richards v. Jefferson County · 517 U.S. 793 (1996)
• Independent Federation of Flight Attendants v. Zipes · 491 U.S. 754 (1989)
• Vance v. Ball State Univ. · 570 U.S. 421 (2013)
• Landgraf v. USI Film Products · 511 U.S. 244 (1994)
• Ortiz v. Fibreboard Corp. · 527 U.S. 815 (1999)
• Baker v. General Motors Corp. · 522 U.S. 222 (1998)
• Exxon Mobil Corp. v. Saudi Basic Industries Corp. · 544 U.S. 280 (2005)

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).