Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. v. Manning
Decided May 16, 2016. Elena Kagan delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 14-1132 · 578 U.S. 374 (2016) · Cited 198 times
Holding
The jurisdictional test established by § 27 is the same as § 1331's test for deciding if a case “arises under” a federal law.
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 8–0.
Majority · 6
- Elena Kagan · delivered the opinion of the Court
- Anthony McLeod Kennedy
- John Glover Roberts Jr.
- Ruth Bader Ginsburg
- Samuel A. Alito Jr.
- Stephen Gerald Breyer
Concurring · 2
- Clarence Thomas · filed a concurring opinion
- Sonia Sotomayor
“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.
- Pan American Petroleum Corp. v. Superior Court of Del. for New Castle Cty. · 366 U.S. 656 (1961)
- Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. v. Epstein · 516 U.S. 367 (1996)
- Grable & Sons Metal Products, Inc. v. Darue Engineering & Manufacturing · 545 U.S. 308 (2005)
- Romero v. International Terminal Operating Co. · 358 U.S. 354 (1959)
- Hertz Corp. v. Friend · 559 U.S. 77 (2010)
- Gunn v. Minton · 568 U.S. 251 (2013)
- Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc. v. Thompson Ex Rel. Thompson · 478 U.S. 804 (1986)
- Gully v. First Nat. Bank in Meridian · 299 U.S. 109 (1936)
- Tafflin v. Levitt · 493 U.S. 455 (1990)
- Shamrock Oil & Gas Corp. v. Sheets · 313 U.S. 100 (1941)
- United States v. Detroit Timber & Lumber Co. · 200 U.S. 321 (1906)
- American Well Works Company v. Layne and Bowler Company · 241 U.S. 257 (1916)
- Healy v. Ratta · 292 U.S. 263 (1934)
- Shulthis v. McDougal · 225 U.S. 561 (1912)
- Hopkins v. Walker · 244 U.S. 486 (1917)
- Osborn v. Bank of United States · 22 U.S. 738 (1824)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
Explore from here
Elena Kagan’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court
Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2016). 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).