Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action
572 U.S. 291 · Decided April 22, 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
Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action was decided on April 22, 2014 by a vote of 6–2. The Court reversed 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
- 572 U.S. 291 · 134 S. Ct. 1623 · 188 L. Ed. 2d 613 · 2014 U.S. LEXIS 2932
- Docket number
- 12-682
- Decided
- April 22, 2014
- Argued
- October 15, 2013
- Court era
- Roberts Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–2
- Majority opinion
- Anthony M. Kennedy
- Opinion assigned by
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- 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)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Judgment of the Court | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Dissent | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
Did not participate: Elena Kagan.
Full case caption
Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action
SCDB identifiers: case 2013-035, docket 2013-035-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Affirmative action”
- Abigail Noel Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin
- 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)
- Ala. Legislative Black Caucus v. Alabama
- Christine Armour v. City of Indianapolis
- Evenwel v. Abbott
- Harris v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission
- Foster v. Chatman
- Bethune-Hill v. Va Bd. of Elections
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Madigan v. Levin
- Hinton v. Alabama
- Lozano v. Montoya Alvarez
- Tolan v. Cotton
- Michigan v. Bay Mills Indian Community
- Plumhoff v. Rickard
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