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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.

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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

JusticeVoteSeparate writing
Justice Anthony M. KennedyMajorityWrote an opinion
Justice Clarence ThomasDissentWrote an opinion
Justice Ruth Bader GinsburgMajority
Justice Stephen G. BreyerMajority
Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr.Dissent
Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr.DissentWrote an opinion
Justice Sonia SotomayorMajority

Did not participate: Elena Kagan.

Full case caption

Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin

SCDB identifiers: case 2015-029, docket 2015-029-01.

Other cases on “Affirmative action”

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Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)

Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)

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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