Northern Insurance Company of New York v. Chatham County, Georgia
Decided April 25, 2006. Clarence Thomas delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 04-1618 · 547 U.S. 189 (2006) · Cited 166 times
Holding
An entity that does not qualify as an “arm of the State” for Eleventh Amendment purposes cannot assert sovereign immunity as a defense to an admiralty suit.
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.
- Alden v. Maine · 527 U.S. 706 (1999)
- Lake Country Estates, Inc. v. Tahoe Regional Planning Agency · 440 U.S. 391 (1979)
- Seminole Tribe of Florida v. Florida · 517 U.S. 44 (1996)
- Federal Maritime Commission v. South Carolina State Ports Authority · 535 U.S. 743 (2002)
- Mt. Healthy City School District Board of Education v. Doyle · 429 U.S. 274 (1977)
- Ex Parte State of New York, No. 1 · 256 U.S. 490 (1921)
- Lincoln County v. Luning · 133 U.S. 529 (1890)
- Principality of Monaco v. Mississippi · 292 U.S. 313 (1934)
- Jinks v. Richland County · 538 U.S. 456 (2003)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2006). 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).