Sackett v. EPA

Decided May 25, 2023. Samuel A. Alito Jr. delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 21-454 · 598 U.S. 651 (2023) · Cited 52 times

Holding

The Clean Water Act extends only to wetlands that have a continuous surface connection with “waters” of the United States—i.e., with a relatively permanent body of water connected to traditional interstate navigable waters, 33 U. S. C. §1362(7)—making it difficult to determine where the water ends and the wetland begins.

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.

“Concurring” means agreeing with the outcome; any split shown is the Court’s judgment, not each Justice’s reasoning. The lineup is the syllabus’s disposition of who wrote and joined each opinion. Source: the opinion’s syllabus (supremecourt.gov).

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.

• Sackett v. EPA · 598 U.S. 651 (2023)
• Rapanos v. United States · 547 U.S. 715 (2006)
• United States v. Riverside Bayview Homes, Inc. · 474 U.S. 121 (1985)
• Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County v. United States Army Corps of Engineers · 531 U.S. 159 (2001)
• The Daniel Ball · 77 U.S. 557 (1871)
• Leovy v. United States · 177 U.S. 621 (1900)
• Bond v. United States · 572 U.S. 844 (2014)
• United States v. Rio Grande Dam & Irrigation Co. · 174 U.S. 690 (1899)
• Gonzales v. Raich · 545 U.S. 1 (2005)
• Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency · 566 U.S. 120 (2012)
• United States v. Coombs · 37 U.S. 72 (1838)
• Gibbons v. Ogden · 22 U.S. 1 (1824)
• Skilling v. United States · 561 U.S. 358 (2010)
• United States v. Appalachian Electric Power Co. · 311 U.S. 377 (1941)
• United States v. Bass · 404 U.S. 336 (1971)
• United States v. Darby · 312 U.S. 100 (1941)
• City of Milwaukee v. Illinois · 451 U.S. 304 (1981)
• Economy Light & Power Co. v. United States · 256 U.S. 113 (1921)
• Oklahoma Ex Rel. Phillips v. Guy F. Atkinson Co. · 313 U.S. 508 (1941)
• Wisconsin v. Illinois · 278 U.S. 367 (1929)
• United States v. Lopez · 514 U.S. 549 (1995)
• Russello v. United States · 464 U.S. 16 (1983)
• Food & Drug Administration v. Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. · 529 U.S. 120 (2000)
• United Sav. Assn. of Tex. v. Timbers of Inwood Forest Associates, Ltd. · 484 U.S. 365 (1988)
• Whitman v. American Trucking Assns., Inc. · 531 U.S. 457 (2001)
• Hodel v. Virginia Surface Mining & Reclamation Assn., Inc. · 452 U.S. 264 (1981)
• Wickard v. Filburn · 317 U.S. 111 (1942)
• National Ass'n of Home Builders v. Defenders of Wildlife · 551 U.S. 644 (2007)
• Nichols v. United States · 511 U.S. 738 (1994)
• Hess v. Port Authority Trans-Hudson Corporation · 513 U.S. 30 (1994)

Cited by

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

• Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo · 603 U.S. 369 (2024)

Official text

Read the official opinion (PDF, supremecourt.gov)

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Samuel A. Alito Jr.’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court

Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2023). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-08-15. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).