United States v. Washington
Decided June 21, 2022. Stephen Gerald Breyer delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 21-404 · 596 U.S. 832 (2022) · Cited 33 times
Holding
Washington’s workers’ compensation law is unconstitutional under the Supremacy Clause because it facially discriminates against the Federal Government and does not fall within the scope of the federal waiver of immunity contained in 40 U. S. C. §3172.
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
- John G. Roberts, Jr.
- Clarence Thomas
- Samuel A. Alito, Jr.
- Sonia Sotomayor
- Elena Kagan
- Neil M. Gorsuch
- Brett M. Kavanaugh
- Amy Coney Barrett
- Stephen G. Breyer · delivered the opinion of the Court
“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.
- Goodyear Atomic Corp. v. Miller · 486 U.S. 174 (1988)
- North Dakota v. United States · 495 U.S. 423 (1990)
- Hancock v. Train · 426 U.S. 167 (1976)
- Zivotofsky Ex Rel. Zivotofsky v. Clinton · 566 U.S. 189 (2012)
- South Carolina v. Baker · 485 U.S. 505 (1988)
- United States v. Detroit Timber & Lumber Co. · 200 U.S. 321 (1906)
- Chafin v. Chafin · 568 U.S. 165 (2013)
- Federal Aviation Administration v. Cooper · 566 U.S. 284 (2012)
- Environmental Protection Agency v. California Ex Rel. State Water Resources Control Board · 426 U.S. 200 (1976)
- United States v. County of Fresno · 429 U.S. 452 (1977)
Official text
Read the official opinion (PDF, supremecourt.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 (2022). 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).