Young, Commissioner of Food and Drug Administration v. Community Nutrition Institute et al.

Decided June 16, 1986. Sandra Day O'Connor delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 85-664 · 476 U.S. 974 (1986) · Cited 224 times

Holding

In light of 346's inherent ambiguity, the FDA's interpretation of the provision is sufficiently rational to preclude a court from substituting its judgment for that of the FDA.

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.

• Chevron U. S. A. Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. · 467 U.S. 837 (1984)
• Securities & Exchange Commission v. Sloan · 436 U.S. 103 (1978)
• National Labor Relations Board v. Bell Aerospace Co. · 416 U.S. 267 (1974)
• Train v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. · 421 U.S. 60 (1975)
• Zenith Radio Corp. v. United States · 437 U.S. 443 (1978)
• Chemical Manufacturers Ass'n v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. · 470 U.S. 116 (1985)
• United States v. National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. · 422 U.S. 694 (1975)
• Federal Maritime Commission v. Seatrain Lines, Inc. · 411 U.S. 726 (1973)
• Adamo Wrecking Co. v. United States · 434 U.S. 275 (1978)
• United States v. Lexington Mill & Elevator Co. · 232 U.S. 399 (1914)
• Saxbe v. Bustos · 419 U.S. 65 (1974)

Cited by

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

• United States v. Mead Corp. · 533 U.S. 218 (2001)
• Bowen v. Georgetown University Hospital · 488 U.S. 204 (1988)
• Christensen v. Harris County · 529 U.S. 576 (2000)
• Negusie v. Holder · 555 U.S. 511 (2009)

Official text

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

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1986). 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).