Ruth O. Shaw, et al. v. Janet Reno, Attorney General, et al.

Decided June 28, 1993. Sandra Day O'Connor delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 92-357 · 509 U.S. 630 (1993) · Cited 739 times

Holding

The Federal Rules of Evidence, not Frye, provide the standard for admitting expert scientific testimony in a federal trial.

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.

• United Jewish Organizations of Williamsburgh, Inc. v. Carey · 430 U.S. 144 (1977)
• Gomillion v. Lightfoot · 364 U.S. 339 (1960)
• WRIGHT Et Al. v. ROCKEFELLER, GOVERNOR OF NEW YORK, Et Al. · 376 U.S. 52 (1964)
• City of Richmond v. J. A. Croson Co. · 488 U.S. 469 (1989)
• Davis v. Bandemer · 478 U.S. 109 (1986)
• Wygant v. Jackson Board of Education · 476 U.S. 267 (1986)
• White v. Regester · 412 U.S. 755 (1973)
• Thornburg v. Gingles · 478 U.S. 30 (1986)
• Beer v. United States · 425 U.S. 130 (1976)
• City of Mobile v. Bolden · 446 U.S. 55 (1980)
• Whitcomb v. Chavis · 403 U.S. 124 (1971)
• Karcher v. Daggett · 462 U.S. 725 (1983)
• Guinn v. United States · 238 U.S. 347 (1915)
• Personnel Administrator of Mass. v. Feeney · 442 U.S. 256 (1979)
• Voinovich v. Quilter · 507 U.S. 146 (1993)
• Reynolds v. Sims · 377 U.S. 533 (1964)
• Regents of the University of California v. Bakke · 438 U.S. 265 (1978)
• South Carolina v. Katzenbach · 383 U.S. 301 (1966)
• Allen v. State Board of Elections · 393 U.S. 544 (1969)
• Gaffney v. Cummings · 412 U.S. 735 (1973)
• Rogers v. Lodge · 458 U.S. 613 (1982)
• Village of Arlington Heights v. Metropolitan Housing Development Corp. · 429 U.S. 252 (1977)
• Brown v. Board of Education · 347 U.S. 483 (1954)
• Bolling v. Sharpe · 347 U.S. 497 (1954)
• Edmonson v. Leesville Concrete Co. · 500 U.S. 614 (1991)
• Fullilove v. Klutznick · 448 U.S. 448 (1980)
• Growe v. Emison · 507 U.S. 25 (1993)
• Chapman v. Meier · 420 U.S. 1 (1975)
• Connor v. Finch · 431 U.S. 407 (1977)
• Yick Wo v. Hopkins · 118 U.S. 356 (1886)

Cited by

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

• Exxon Co., USA v. Sofec, Inc. · 517 U.S. 830 (1996)
• Bush v. Vera · 517 U.S. 952 (1996)
• Miller v. Johnson · 515 U.S. 900 (1995)
• United States v. Hays · 515 U.S. 737 (1995)
• Alexander v. South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP · 602 U.S. 1 (2024)
• Vieth v. Jubelirer · 541 U.S. 267 (2004)
• Allen v. Milligan · 599 U.S. 1 (2023)
• Johnson v. De Grandy · 512 U.S. 997 (1994)
• Bethune-Hill v. Virginia State Bd. of Elections · 580 U.S. 178 (2017)
• Rucho v. Common Cause · 588 U.S. 684 (2019)
• Alabama Legislative Black Caucus v. Alabama · 575 U.S. 254 (2015)
• Bartlett v. Strickland · 556 U.S. 1 (2009)
• Hunt v. Cromartie · 526 U.S. 541 (1999)
• Shelby County v. Holder · 570 U.S. 529 (2013)
• Holder v. Hall · 512 U.S. 874 (1994)
• Cooper v. Harris · 581 U.S. 285 (2017)
• Johnson v. California · 543 U.S. 499 (2005)
• Abrams v. Johnson · 521 U.S. 74 (1997)
• League of United Latin American Citizens v. Perry · 548 U.S. 399 (2006)
• Reno v. Bossier Parish School Board · 528 U.S. 320 (2000)
• Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College · 600 U.S. 181 (2023)
• Georgia v. Ashcroft, Attorney General · 539 U.S. 461 (2003)
• North Carolina v. Covington · 585 U.S. 969 (2018)
• U. S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton · 514 U.S. 779 (1995)
• Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1 · 551 U.S. 701 (2007)
• Abbott v. Perez · 585 U.S. 579 (2018)
• Reno v. Bossier Parish School Board · 520 U.S. 471 (1997)
• Adarand Constructors, Inc. v. Pena · 515 U.S. 200 (1995)
• Board of Ed. of Kiryas Joel Village School Dist. v. Grumet · 512 U.S. 687 (1994)
• Wisconsin Legislature v. Wisconsin Elections Commission · 595 U.S. 398 (2022)

Official text

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

Explore from here

Sandra Day O'Connor’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court

Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1993). 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).