Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin
579 U.S. 365 · Decided June 23, 2016 · 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
Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin was decided on June 23, 2016 by a vote of 4–3. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. 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
- 579 U.S. 365 · 136 S. Ct. 2198 · 195 L. Ed. 2d 511 · 2016 U.S. LEXIS 4059
- Docket number
- 14-981
- Decided
- June 23, 2016
- Argued
- December 9, 2015
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 4–3
- Majority opinion
- Anthony M. Kennedy
- Opinion assigned by
- Anthony M. Kennedy
- 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)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Dissent | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Majority |
Did not participate: Elena Kagan.
Full case caption
Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin
SCDB identifiers: case 2015-029, docket 2015-029-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Affirmative action”
- Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action
- Abigail Noel Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin
- Frank Ricci v. John Destefano
- Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard CollegeAltered precedent
- Jennifer Gratz and Patrick Hamacher v. Lee Bollinger
- Barbara Grutter v. Lee Bollinger
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
- Foster v. Chatman
- Harris v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission
- Evenwel v. Abbott
- Bethune-Hill v. Va Bd. of Elections
- Cooper v. HarrisLaw held unconstitutional
- Pavan v. SmithLaw held unconstitutional
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Bruce v. Samuels
- Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin v. United States
- Nebraska v. Parker
- Evenwel v. Abbott
- Harris v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission
- Sheriff v. Gillie
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