World-Wide Volkswagen Corp. et al. v. Woodson, District Judge of Creek County, Oklahoma, et al.

Decided January 21, 1980. Byron Raymond White delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 78-1078 · 444 U.S. 286 (1980) · Cited 8,668 times

Holding

Consistently with the Due Process Clause, the Oklahoma trial court may not exercise in personam jurisdiction over petitioners.

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 6–3.

“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.

• Shaffer v. Heitner · 433 U.S. 186 (1977)
• International Shoe Co. v. Washington · 326 U.S. 310 (1945)
• Kulko v. Superior Court of Cal., City and County of San Francisco · 436 U.S. 84 (1978)
• McGee v. International Life Insurance · 355 U.S. 220 (1957)
• Hanson v. Denckla · 357 U.S. 235 (1958)
• Mullane v. Central Hanover Bank & Trust Co. · 339 U.S. 306 (1950)
• Milliken v. Meyer · 311 U.S. 457 (1941)
• Hess v. Pawloski · 274 U.S. 352 (1927)
• Estin v. Estin · 334 U.S. 541 (1948)
• H. P. Hood & Sons, Inc. v. Du Mond · 336 U.S. 525 (1949)
• Harris v. Balk · 198 U.S. 215 (1905)
• Watson v. Employers Liability Assurance Corp. · 348 U.S. 66 (1954)
• Ohio v. Wyandotte Chemicals Corp. · 401 U.S. 493 (1971)

Cited by

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

• Asahi Metal Industry Co. v. Superior Court of Cal., Solano Cty. · 480 U.S. 102 (1987)
• J. McIntyre Machinery, Ltd. v. Nicastro · 564 U.S. 873 (2011)
• Burger King Corp. v. Rudzewicz · 471 U.S. 462 (1985)
• Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court of Cal., San Francisco Cty. · 582 U.S. 255 (2017)
• Ford Motor Co. v. Montana Eighth Judicial Dist. · 592 U.S. 351 (2021)
• Walden v. Fiore · 571 U.S. 277 (2014)
• Fuld v. Palestine Liberation Organization · 606 U.S. 1 (2025)
• Mallory v. Norfolk Southern R. Co · 600 U.S. 122 (2023)
• Insurance Corp. of Ireland v. Compagnie Des Bauxites De Guinee · 456 U.S. 694 (1982)
• Calder v. Jones · 465 U.S. 783 (1984)
• Keeton v. Hustler Magazine, Inc. · 465 U.S. 770 (1984)
• Phillips Petroleum Co. v. Shutts · 472 U.S. 797 (1985)
• Helicopteros Nacionales De Colombia, S. A. v. Hall · 466 U.S. 408 (1984)
• Daimler AG v. Bauman · 571 U.S. 117 (2014)
• Goodyear Dunlop Tires Operations, S. A. v. Brown · 564 U.S. 915 (2011)
• Burnham v. Superior Court of Cal., County of Marin · 495 U.S. 604 (1990)
• Allstate Insurance v. Hague · 449 U.S. 302 (1981)
• Franchise Tax Bd. of Cal. v. Hyatt · 587 U.S. 230 (2019)
• Peralta v. Heights Medical Center, Inc. · 485 U.S. 80 (1988)
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Wyoming · 460 U.S. 226 (1983)
• United States v. Morton · 467 U.S. 822 (1984)
• Bendix Autolite Corp. v. Midwesco Enterprises, Inc. · 486 U.S. 888 (1988)

Official text

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

Explore from here

Byron Raymond White’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court

Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1980). 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).