City of Boerne v. P. F. Flores
521 U.S. 507 · Decided June 25, 1997 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
City of Boerne v. P. F. Flores was decided on June 25, 1997 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Free exercise of religion” in the First Amendment area. SCDB records that the Court declared an act of Congress unconstitutional.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 521 U.S. 507 · 117 S. Ct. 2157 · 138 L. Ed. 2d 624 · 1997 U.S. LEXIS 4035
- Docket number
- 95-2074
- Decided
- June 25, 1997
- Argued
- February 19, 1997
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Anthony M. Kennedy
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Free exercise of religion
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (enforcement clause)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Held unconstitutional
- An act of Congress
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice David H. Souter | Jurisdictional dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
City of Boerne v. P. F. Flores, Archbishop of San Antonio, and United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1996-087, docket 1996-087-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Free exercise of religion”
- Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye, Inc. and Ernesto Pichardo v. City of HialeahLaw held unconstitutional
- Lamb's Chapel and John Steigerwald v. Center Moriches Union Free School DistrictLaw held unconstitutional
- Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc. v. Village of StrattonLaw held unconstitutional
- Employment Division v. Smith
- Jimmy Swaggart Ministries v. Board of Equalization of California
- Frazee v. Illinois Department of Employment Security
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (enforcement clause)
- Nevada Department of Human Resources v. William Hibbs
- Daniel Coleman v. Court of Appeals of MarylandLaw held unconstitutional
- Fitzpatrick v. Bitzer
- Trump v. Anderson
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
- Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. v. Federal Communications Commission
- Rachel Agostini v. Betty-Louise FeltonAltered precedent
- Dan Glickman v. Wileman Brothers & Elliott, Inc.
- Janet Reno v. American Civil Liberties UnionLaw held unconstitutional
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