State of Alabama, et al., Plaintiffs v. State of North Carolina.

Decided June 1, 2010. Antonin Scalia delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 132, Orig. · 560 U.S. 330 (2010) · Cited 301 times

Holding

Under the comity doctrine, a taxpayer’s complaint of allegedly discriminatory state taxation, even when framed as a request to increase a competitor’s tax burden, must proceed originally in state court.

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 6–3.

“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.

• Arizona v. California · 460 U.S. 605 (1983)
• Alden v. Maine · 527 U.S. 706 (1999)
• Pennhurst State School and Hospital v. Halderman · 465 U.S. 89 (1984)
• New York v. United States · 505 U.S. 144 (1992)
• Countyof Oneida v. Oneida Indian Nation of NY · 470 U.S. 226 (1985)
• Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc. · 477 U.S. 242 (1986)
• Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, Administratrix of the Estate of Catrett · 477 U.S. 317 (1986)
• Seminole Tribe of Florida v. Florida · 517 U.S. 44 (1996)
• Bennett v. Spear · 520 U.S. 154 (1997)
• Connecticut National Bank v. Germain · 503 U.S. 249 (1992)
• Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority v. Metcalf & Eddy, Inc. · 506 U.S. 139 (1993)
• College Savings Bank v. Florida Prepaid Postsecondary Education Expense Board · 527 U.S. 666 (1999)
• United States v. Detroit Timber & Lumber Co. · 200 U.S. 321 (1906)
• Maryland v. Louisiana · 451 U.S. 725 (1981)
• Shalala v. Illinois Council on Long Term Care, Inc. · 529 U.S. 1 (2000)
• Hess v. Port Authority Trans-Hudson Corporation · 513 U.S. 30 (1994)
• Cuyler v. Adams · 449 U.S. 433 (1981)
• Henderson v. United States · 517 U.S. 654 (1996)
• Federal Maritime Commission v. South Carolina State Ports Authority · 535 U.S. 743 (2002)
• Federal Land Bank of St. Paul v. Bismarck Lumber Co. · 314 U.S. 95 (1941)
• Nebraska v. Wyoming · 507 U.S. 584 (1993)
• Franconia Associates v. United States · 536 U.S. 129 (2002)
• United States Department of Energy v. Ohio · 503 U.S. 607 (1992)

Cited by

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

• Texas v. New Mexico · 602 U.S. 943 (2024)
• A. J. T. v. Osseo Area Schools, Independent School Dist. No. 279 · 605 U.S. 335 (2025)
• New York v. New Jersey · 598 U.S. 218 (2023)

Official text

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

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Antonin Scalia’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court

Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2010). 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).