Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., et al. v. Lawrence Epstein, et al.

Decided February 27, 1996. Clarence Thomas delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 94-1809 · 516 U.S. 367 (1996) · Cited 497 times

Holding

The Delaware settlement judgment is entitled to full faith and credit, notwithstanding the fact that it released claims within the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal courts.

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 6–3.

“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.

• Marrese v. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons · 470 U.S. 373 (1985)
• Kremer v. Chemical Construction Corp. · 456 U.S. 461 (1982)
• Phillips Petroleum Co. v. Shutts · 472 U.S. 797 (1985)
• Becher v. Contoure Laboratories, Inc. · 279 U.S. 388 (1929)
• Allen v. McCurry · 449 U.S. 90 (1980)
• Migra v. Warren City School District Board of Education · 465 U.S. 75 (1984)
• Hansberry v. Lee · 311 U.S. 32 (1940)
• Brown v. Felsen · 442 U.S. 127 (1979)
• Shearson/American Express Inc. v. McMahon · 482 U.S. 220 (1987)
• Kalb v. Feuerstein · 308 U.S. 433 (1940)
• General Telephone Co. of Southwest v. Falcon · 457 U.S. 147 (1982)
• Connecticut National Bank v. Germain · 503 U.S. 249 (1992)
• Yee v. City of Escondido · 503 U.S. 519 (1992)
• Peralta v. Heights Medical Center, Inc. · 485 U.S. 80 (1988)
• Durfee v. Duke · 375 U.S. 106 (1963)
• Radzanower v. Touche Ross & Co. · 426 U.S. 148 (1976)
• Cooper v. Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond · 467 U.S. 867 (1984)
• McDonald v. City of West Branch · 466 U.S. 284 (1984)
• Parsons Steel, Inc. v. First Alabama Bank · 474 U.S. 518 (1986)
• Underwriters National Assurance Co. v. North Carolina Life & Accident & Health Insurance Guaranty Ass'n · 455 U.S. 691 (1982)

Cited by

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

• Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. v. Manning · 578 U.S. 374 (2016)
• J. E. M. Ag Supply, Inc. v. Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. · 534 U.S. 124 (2001)
• Baker v. General Motors Corp. · 522 U.S. 222 (1998)
• Exxon Mobil Corp. v. Saudi Basic Industries Corp. · 544 U.S. 280 (2005)
• Bennett v. Spear · 520 U.S. 154 (1997)
• Dorsey v. United States · 567 U.S. 260 (2012)
• United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 751 v. Brown Group, Inc. · 517 U.S. 544 (1996)
• Seling v. Young · 531 U.S. 250 (2001)
• Holly Farms Corp. v. National Labor Relations Board · 517 U.S. 392 (1996)
• United States v. Estate of Romani · 523 U.S. 517 (1998)

Official text

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

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1996). 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).