Rush et al. v. Savchuk
Decided January 21, 1980. Thurgood Marshall delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 78-952 · 444 U.S. 320 (1980) · Cited 772 times
Holding
A State may not constitutionally exercise quasi in rem jurisdiction over a defendant who has no forum contacts by attaching the contractual obligation of an insurer licensed to do business in the State to defend and indemnify him in connection with the 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 7–2.
Majority · 7
- Thurgood Marshall · delivered the opinion of the Court
- Byron Raymond White
- Harry Andrew Blackmun
- Lewis Franklin Powell Jr.
- Potter Stewart
- Warren Earl Burger
- William Hubbs Rehnquist
Dissenting · 2
- John Paul Stevens · filed a dissenting opinion
- William Joseph Brennan Jr. · filed a dissenting opinion
“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.
- Shaffer v. Heitner · 433 U.S. 186 (1977)
- Watson v. Employers Liability Assurance Corp. · 348 U.S. 66 (1954)
- International Shoe Co. v. Washington · 326 U.S. 310 (1945)
- Kulko v. Superior Court of Cal., City and County of San Francisco · 436 U.S. 84 (1978)
- Hanson v. Denckla · 357 U.S. 235 (1958)
- McGee v. International Life Insurance · 355 U.S. 220 (1957)
- Harris v. Balk · 198 U.S. 215 (1905)
- Home Insurance v. Dick · 281 U.S. 397 (1930)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Walden v. Fiore · 571 U.S. 277 (2014)
- Calder v. Jones · 465 U.S. 783 (1984)
- Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court of Cal., San Francisco Cty. · 582 U.S. 255 (2017)
- Keeton v. Hustler Magazine, Inc. · 465 U.S. 770 (1984)
- Burnham v. Superior Court of Cal., County of Marin · 495 U.S. 604 (1990)
- Allstate Insurance v. Hague · 449 U.S. 302 (1981)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1980). 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).