Teresa Harris v. Forklift Systems, Inc.
Decided November 9, 1993. Sandra Day O'Connor delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 92-1168 · 510 U.S. 17 (1993) · Cited 8,430 times
Holding
To be actionable as “abusive work environment” harassment, conduct need not “seriously affect psychological well-being ” or lead the plaintiff to “suffe injury.”
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 · 7
- Sandra Day O'Connor · delivered the opinion of the Court
- Anthony McLeod Kennedy
- Clarence Thomas
- David Hackett Souter
- Harry Andrew Blackmun
- John Paul Stevens
- William Hubbs Rehnquist
Concurring · 2
- Antonin Scalia · filed a concurring opinion
- Ruth Bader Ginsburg · filed a concurring 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.
- Meritor Savings Bank, FSB v. Vinson · 477 U.S. 57 (1986)
- Mississippi University for Women v. Hogan · 458 U.S. 718 (1982)
- City of Los Angeles Department of Water v. Manhart · 435 U.S. 702 (1978)
- International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace & Agricultural Implement v. Johnson Controls, Inc. · 499 U.S. 187 (1991)
- KIRCHBERG v. FEENSTRA Et Al. · 450 U.S. 455 (1981)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- National Railroad Passenger Corporation v. Morgan · 536 U.S. 101 (2002)
- Faragher v. City of Boca Raton · 524 U.S. 775 (1998)
- Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services, Inc. · 523 U.S. 75 (1998)
- Vance v. Ball State Univ. · 570 U.S. 421 (2013)
- Burlington Industries, Inc. v. Ellerth · 524 U.S. 742 (1998)
- Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Co. v. White · 548 U.S. 53 (2006)
- Landgraf v. USI Film Products · 511 U.S. 244 (1994)
- Clark County School District v. Breeden · 532 U.S. 268 (2001)
- JEB v. Alabama Ex Rel. TB · 511 U.S. 127 (1994)
- Pennsylvania State Police v. Suders · 542 U.S. 129 (2004)
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).