Schindler Elevator Corporation v. United States ex Rel. Daniel Kirk
563 U.S. 401 · Decided May 16, 2011 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
Schindler Elevator Corporation v. United States ex Rel. Daniel Kirk was decided on May 16, 2011 by a vote of 5–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Freedom of Information Act and related laws” in the Privacy area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 563 U.S. 401 · 131 S. Ct. 1885 · 179 L. Ed. 2d 825 · 2011 U.S. LEXIS 3542
- Docket number
- 10-188
- Decided
- May 16, 2011
- Argued
- March 1, 2011
- 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
- 5–3
- Majority opinion
- Clarence Thomas
- Opinion assigned by
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Freedom of Information Act and related laws
- Issue area
- Privacy
- Legal provision
- Freedom of Information, Sunshine, or Privacy Act
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Dissent |
Did not participate: Elena Kagan.
Full case caption
Schindler Elevator Corporation, Petitioner v. United States ex Rel. Daniel Kirk
SCDB identifiers: case 2010-042, docket 2010-042-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Freedom of Information Act and related laws”
- Glen Scott Milner v. Department of the Navy
- Federal Communications Commission v. AT&T Inc.
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration v. Robert M. Nelson
- John Doe #1 v. Sam Reed
- Mark J. McBurney v. Nathaniel L. Young
- Lawson v. FMR LLC
Cases on the same legal provision: Freedom of Information, Sunshine, or Privacy Act
Same Term, same area (Privacy)
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration v. Robert M. Nelson
- Federal Communications Commission v. AT&T Inc.
- Glen Scott Milner v. Department of the Navy
- General Dynamics Corporation v. United States
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