Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores
573 U.S. 682 · Decided June 30, 2014 · 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
Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores was decided on June 30, 2014 by a vote of 5–4. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Free exercise of religion” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 573 U.S. 682 · 134 S. Ct. 2751 · 189 L. Ed. 2d 675 · 2014 U.S. LEXIS 4505
- Docket number
- 13-354
- Decided
- June 30, 2014
- Argued
- March 25, 2014
- 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
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Samuel A. Alito Jr.
- Opinion assigned by
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Free exercise of religion
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- Religious Freedom Restoration Act
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Dissent | Co-authored 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 | Co-authored an opinion |
Full case caption
Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores
SCDB identifiers: case 2013-070, docket 2013-070-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Free exercise of religion”
- Holt v. Hobbs
- Zubik v. Burwell
- Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionLaw held unconstitutional
- Christian Legal Society Chapter of the University of California v. Leo P. Martinez
- Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru
- Tanzin v. Tanvir
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
- Air Wisconsin Airlines Corp. v. Hoeper
- McCutcheon v. FECLaw held unconstitutional
- Town of Greece v. Galloway
- Wood v. Moss
- Lane v. Franks
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