U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service v. Sierra Club
144 S. Ct. 777 · Decided March 4, 2021 · 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
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service v. Sierra Club was decided on March 4, 2021 by a vote of 7–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Amy Coney Barrett 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
- CourtListener (Free Law Project) — opinion text
- Supreme Court of the United States — slip opinions, October Term 2020
- Supreme Court of the United States — docket 19-547
Case details
- Citations
- 144 S. Ct. 777 · 209 L. Ed. 2d 78 · 2021 U.S. LEXIS 1279
- Docket number
- 19-547
- Decided
- March 4, 2021
- Argued
- November 2, 2020
- 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
- 7–2
- Majority opinion
- Amy Coney Barrett
- 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 Clarence Thomas | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Sonia Sotomayor | Dissent | |
| Justice Elena Kagan | Majority | |
| Justice Neil M. Gorsuch | Majority | |
| Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh | Majority | |
| Justice Amy Coney Barrett | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service v. Sierra Club
SCDB identifiers: case 2020-011, docket 2020-011-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Freedom of Information Act and related laws”
- United States v. Zubaydah
- Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media
- Republic of Argentina v. NML Capital, Ltd.
- Lawson v. FMR LLC
- Mark J. McBurney v. Nathaniel L. Young
- Schindler Elevator Corporation v. United States ex Rel. Daniel Kirk
Cases on the same legal provision: Freedom of Information, Sunshine, or Privacy Act
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