Abigail Noel Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin
570 U.S. 297 · Decided June 24, 2013 · Supreme Court of the United States
Record summary. This page is generated from the Supreme Court Database’s coded data about the case. It describes who decided what, not the Court’s reasoning. Read the opinion itself before relying on it. Not legal advice.
At a glance
Abigail Noel Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin was decided on June 24, 2013 by a vote of 7–1. The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Affirmative action” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 570 U.S. 297 · 133 S. Ct. 2411 · 186 L. Ed. 2d 474 · 2013 U.S. LEXIS 4701
- Docket number
- 11-345
- Decided
- June 24, 2013
- Argued
- October 10, 2012
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Vacated and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 7–1
- Majority opinion
- Anthony M. Kennedy
- Opinion assigned by
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Affirmative action
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Majority |
Did not participate: Elena Kagan.
Full case caption
Abigail Noel Fisher, Petitioner v. University of Texas at Austin et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 2012-068, docket 2012-068-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Affirmative action”
- Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action
- Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin
- Frank Ricci v. John Destefano
- Jennifer Gratz and Patrick Hamacher v. Lee Bollinger
- Barbara Grutter v. Lee Bollinger
- Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard CollegeAltered precedent
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
- Christine Armour v. City of Indianapolis
- Ala. Legislative Black Caucus v. Alabama
- Evenwel v. Abbott
- Harris v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission
- Foster v. Chatman
- Bethune-Hill v. Va Bd. of Elections
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Carolyn M. Kloeckner v. Hilda L. Solis
- Jeffrey Lee Chafin v. Lynne Hales Chafin
- John Marshall v. Otis Lee Rodgers
- Adrian Moncrieffe v. Eric H. Holder, Jr.
- Carlos Trevino v. Rick Thaler
- Arizona v. the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc.
Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error