Tulsa Professional Collection Services, Inc. v. Joanne Pope, Executrix of the Estate of H. Everett Pope, Jr., Deceased

Decided April 19, 1988. Sandra Day O'Connor delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 86-1961 · 485 U.S. 478 (1988) · Cited 906 times

Holding

If appellant's identity as a creditor was known or "reasonably ascertainable" by appellee (a fact which cannot be determined from the present record), the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, as interpreted by Mullane and Mennonite, requires that appellant be given notice by mail or such other means as is certain to ensure actual notice.

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 8–1.

“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.

• Mullane v. Central Hanover Bank & Trust Co. · 339 U.S. 306 (1950)
• Mennonite Board of Missions v. Adams · 462 U.S. 791 (1983)
• Texaco, Inc. v. Short · 454 U.S. 516 (1982)
• Logan v. Zimmerman Brush Co. · 455 U.S. 422 (1982)
• Flagg Bros., Inc. v. Brooks · 436 U.S. 149 (1978)
• City of New York v. New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad · 344 U.S. 293 (1953)
• Lugar v. Edmondson Oil Co. · 457 U.S. 922 (1982)
• United Sav. Assn. of Tex. v. Timbers of Inwood Forest Associates, Ltd. · 484 U.S. 365 (1988)
• Sniadach v. Family Finance Corp. of Bay View · 395 U.S. 337 (1969)
• Memphis Light, Gas & Water Division v. Craft · 436 U.S. 1 (1978)
• Schroeder v. City of New York · 371 U.S. 208 (1962)
• Bank of Marin v. England · 385 U.S. 99 (1966)
• Greene v. Lindsey · 456 U.S. 444 (1982)

Cited by

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

• Jones v. Flowers · 547 U.S. 220 (2006)
• American Manufacturers Mutual Insurance v. Sullivan · 526 U.S. 40 (1999)
• Edmonson v. Leesville Concrete Co. · 500 U.S. 614 (1991)
• Dusenbery v. United States · 534 U.S. 161 (2002)
• United States v. James Daniel Good Real Property · 510 U.S. 43 (1993)
• Martin v. Wilks · 490 U.S. 755 (1989)
• Richards v. Jefferson County · 517 U.S. 793 (1996)
• Connecticut v. Doehr · 501 U.S. 1 (1991)

Official text

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

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1988). 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).