Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl
570 U.S. 637 · Decided June 25, 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
Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl was decided on June 25, 2013 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Indians (general)” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 570 U.S. 637 · 133 S. Ct. 2552 · 186 L. Ed. 2d 729 · 2013 U.S. LEXIS 4916
- Docket number
- 12-399
- Decided
- June 25, 2013
- Argued
- April 16, 2013
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Samuel A. Alito Jr.
- Opinion assigned by
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Indians (general)
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- 25-1912 (f)
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Concurrence | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Dissent | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Dissent | |
| Justice Elena Kagan | Dissent |
Full case caption
Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl
SCDB identifiers: case 2012-075, docket 2012-075-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Indians (general)”
- Salazar v. Ramah Navajo Chapter
- United States v. Jicarilla Apache Nation
- United States v. Tohono O'Odham Nation
- Madison County
- Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin v. United States
- Dollar General Corporation v. Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians
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