Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., et al.

Decided April 3, 1978. William Hubbs Rehnquist delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 76-419 · 435 U.S. 519 (1978) · Cited 2,329 times

We don’t yet publish a summary of this opinion — read the official text below for the Court’s holding and reasoning.

How the Justices voted

Decided 7–0.

“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.

• Wong Yang Sung v. McGrath · 339 U.S. 33 (1950)
• United States v. Florida East Coast Railway Co. · 410 U.S. 224 (1973)
• Federal Communications Commission v. Schreiber · 381 U.S. 279 (1965)
• Securities & Exchange Commission v. Chenery Corp. · 332 U.S. 194 (1947)
• Kleppe v. Sierra Club · 427 U.S. 390 (1976)
• Federal Communications Commission v. Pottsville Broadcasting Co. · 309 U.S. 134 (1940)
• Bi-Metallic Investment Co. v. State Board of Equalization · 239 U.S. 441 (1915)
• Aberdeen & Rockfish R. Co. v. Students Challenging Regulatory Agency Procedures (SCRAP) · 422 U.S. 289 (1975)
• Federal Power Commission v. Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Corp. · 423 U.S. 326 (1976)
• Citizens to Preserve Overton Park, Inc. v. Volpe · 401 U.S. 402 (1971)
• Securities & Exchange Commission v. Chenery Corp. · 318 U.S. 80 (1943)
• Consolo v. Federal Maritime Commission · 383 U.S. 607 (1966)
• Camp v. Pitts · 411 U.S. 138 (1973)
• United States v. Students Challenging Regulatory Agency Procedures (SCRAP) · 412 U.S. 669 (1973)
• Oklahoma Press Publishing Co. v. Walling · 327 U.S. 186 (1946)
• Orloff v. Willoughby · 345 U.S. 83 (1953)
• Norwegian Nitrogen Products Co. v. United States · 288 U.S. 294 (1933)
• Bowles v. Willingham · 321 U.S. 503 (1944)
• Power Reactor Development Co. v. International Union of Electrical, Radio & MacHine Workers · 367 U.S. 396 (1961)
• Endicott Johnson Corp. v. Perkins · 317 U.S. 501 (1943)
• United States v. Allegheny-Ludlum Steel Corp. · 406 U.S. 742 (1972)
• Wallace Corp. v. National Labor Relations Board · 323 U.S. 248 (1944)

Cited by

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

• Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County · 605 U.S. 168 (2025)
• Perez v. Mortgage Bankers Assn. · 575 U.S. 92 (2015)
• Strycker's Bay Neighborhood Council, Inc. v. Karlen · 444 U.S. 223 (1980)
• Baltimore Gas & Electric Co. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. · 462 U.S. 87 (1983)
• Department of Commerce v. New York · 588 U.S. 752 (2019)
• Chrysler Corp. v. Brown · 441 U.S. 281 (1979)
• Pacific Gas & Electric Co. v. State Energy Resources Conservation & Development Commission · 461 U.S. 190 (1983)
• Heckler v. Day · 467 U.S. 104 (1984)
• Motor Vehicle Mfrs. Assn. of United States, Inc. v. State Farm Mut. Automobile Ins. Co. · 463 U.S. 29 (1983)
• Kisor v. Wilkie · 588 U.S. 558 (2019)
• Chemical Manufacturers Ass'n v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. · 470 U.S. 116 (1985)
• Industrial Union Dept., AFL-CIO v. American Petroleum Institute · 448 U.S. 607 (1980)
• Steadman v. Securities & Exchange Commission · 450 U.S. 91 (1981)
• Federal Communications Commission v. Fox Television Stations, Inc. · 556 U.S. 502 (2009)
• Bill Johnson's Restaurants, Inc. v. National Labor Relations Board · 461 U.S. 731 (1983)
• Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation v. LTV Corp. · 496 U.S. 633 (1990)
• Metropolitan Edison Co. v. People Against Nuclear Energy · 460 U.S. 766 (1983)
• Mobil Oil Exploration & Producing Southeast, Inc. v. United Distribution Cos. · 498 U.S. 211 (1991)
• Garland v. Ming Dai · 593 U.S. 357 (2021)
• Johnson v. Arteaga-Martinez · 596 U.S. 573 (2022)
• Heckler v. Chaney · 470 U.S. 821 (1985)
• Bowen v. Georgetown University Hospital · 488 U.S. 204 (1988)
• Marsh v. Oregon Natural Resources Council · 490 U.S. 360 (1989)
• Duke Power Co. v. Carolina Environmental Study Group, Inc. · 438 U.S. 59 (1978)
• County of Los Angeles v. Davis · 440 U.S. 625 (1979)
• Norton v. Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance · 542 U.S. 55 (2004)
• Robertson v. Methow Valley Citizens Council · 490 U.S. 332 (1989)
• Hodel v. Virginia Surface Mining & Reclamation Assn., Inc. · 452 U.S. 264 (1981)
• English v. General Electric Co. · 496 U.S. 72 (1990)
• Schweiker v. Gray Panthers · 453 U.S. 34 (1981)

Official text

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

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Source: the U.S. Reports via govinfo.gov; authoring Justice and vote lineup from the Supreme Court Database (Washington University). 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).