United States v. Joseph Olson, et al.
Decided November 8, 2005. Stephen Gerald Breyer delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 04-759 · 546 U.S. 43 (2005) · Cited 282 times
Holding
Under § 1346(b)(1), the United States waives sovereign immunity only where local law would make a “private person” liable in tort, not where local law would make “a state or municipal entity” liable.
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 · 9
“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.
- Indian Towing Co. v. United States · 350 U.S. 61 (1955)
- Rayonier Inc. v. United States · 352 U.S. 315 (1957)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
Explore from here
Stephen Gerald Breyer’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court
Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (2005). 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).