Supap Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
568 U.S. 519 · Decided March 19, 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
Supap Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. was decided on March 19, 2013 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Stephen G. Breyer wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Copyrights” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 568 U.S. 519 · 133 S. Ct. 1351 · 185 L. Ed. 2d 392 · 2013 U.S. LEXIS 2371
- Docket number
- 11-697
- Decided
- March 19, 2013
- Argued
- October 29, 2012
- 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
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Stephen G. Breyer
- Opinion assigned by
- John G. Roberts Jr.
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Copyrights
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- 17-106
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Dissent | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Dissent | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Concurrence | |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Majority | |
| Justice Elena Kagan | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Supap Kirtsaeng, Dba Bluechristine99, Petitioner v. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
SCDB identifiers: case 2012-025, docket 2012-025-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Copyrights”
- Lawrence Golan v. Eric H. Holder, Jr.
- Petrella v. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc.
- American Broadcasting Cos. v. Aereo, Inc.
- Costco Wholesale Corporation v. Omega, S.A.
- Reed Elsevier, Inc. v. Irvin Muchnick
- Star Athletica, L.L.C. v. Varsity Brands, Inc.
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Los Angeles County Flood Control District Petitioner v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc.
- Already, LLC v. Nike, Inc.
- Federal Trade Commission v. Phoebe Putney Health System, Inc.
- Olivea Marx v. General Revenue Corporation
- Marc J. Gabelli and Bruce Alpert v. Securities and Exchange Commission
- Amgen Inc. v. Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds
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