Decided

No. 19-123

Sharonell Fulton, et al. v. City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, et al.

from the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

See other cases from the Third Circuit.

Docket Entries

JUDGMENT ISSUED.

Judgment REVERSED and case REMANDED. Roberts, C. J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Breyer, Sotomayor, Kagan, Kavanaugh, and Barrett, JJ., joined. Barrett, J., filed a concurring opinion, in which Kavanaugh, J., joined, and in which Breyer, J., joined as to all but the first paragraph. Alito, J., filed an opinion concurring in the judgment, in which Thomas and Gorsuch, JJ., joined. Gorsuch, J., filed an opinion concurring in the judgment, in which Thomas and Alito, JJ., joined.

Argued. For petitioners: Lori H. Windham, Washington, D. C.; and Hashim M. Mooppan, Counselor to the Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. (for United States, as amicus curiae.) For City of Philadelphia, et al. respondents: Neal K. Katyal, Washington, D. C. For Support Center for Child Advocates and Family Pride respondents: Jeffrey L. Fisher, Stanford, Cal.

The record received from the U.S.C.A. 3rd Circuit has been filed electronically (includes sealed material and district court record).

Motion for divided argument filed by respondents GRANTED.

Motion of the Acting Solicitor General for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for divided argument GRANTED.

Reply of petitioners Sharonell Fulton, et al. filed. (Distributed)

CIRCULATED

Record requested from the U.S.C.A. 3rd Circuit.

Brief amicus curiae of American Atheists, Inc. filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Lawrence G. Sager filed.

Brief amici curiae of GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders and 27 Other LGBTQ Advocacy Groups filed.

Brief amici curiae of Republican Legislators, Elected Officials, and Leaders filed.

Brief amici curiae of The National League of Cities et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of Organizations Serving LGBTQ Youth filed.

Brief amici curiae of Church-State Scholars filed.

Brief amici curiae of Lee C. Bollinger, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of First Amendment Scholars filed.

Brief amici curiae of Local Governments, Mayors, and U.S. Conference of Mayors as Amici Curiae in Support of Respondents filed.

Brief amici curiae of Voice for Adoption, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of The Annie E. Casey Foundation, et al. filed.

Amicus brief of The National Women's Law Center and 35 Additional Organizations not accepted for filing. (August 26, 2020 - Corrected version submitted).

Brief amici curiae of Baptist Joint Committee For Religious Liberty, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of National LGBT Bar Assocation, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of The National Women's Law Center and 35 Additional Organizations filed.

Brief amici curiae of Massachusetts, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of Children's Rights, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of FosterClub and Former Foster Youth filed.

Brief amici curiae of ADL (Anti-Defamation League) and Other Organizations filed.

Brief amici curiae of President of the House of Deputies of The Episcopal Church, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of Professors Ira C. Lupu, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE) and 25 Other Organizations Serving Older and Disabled Individuals filed.

Brief amici curiae of 32 Businesses and Organizations filed.

Brief amici curiae of Historians of Child Welfare filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Office of the Cook County Public Guardian filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Lutheran Child and Family Services of Illinois filed.

Brief amici curiae of Members of Congress filed.

Brief amicus curiae of KidsVoice filed.

Brief amicus curiae of New York State Bar Association filed.

Brief amici curiae of Family Equality and PFLAG National filed.

Brief amici curiae of Freedom From Religion Foundation, et al. filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Commonwealth of Pennsylvania filed.

Brief amici curiae of Prospective Foster Parents Subjected to Religiously Motivated Discrimination by Child-Placement Agencies filed.

Brief amici curiae of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of American Psychological Association, et al. filed.

Brief amicus curiae of The American Bar Association filed.

Brief amici curiae of Scholars Who Study The LGB Population filed.

Brief amici curiae of Former Service Secretaries and the Modern Military Association of America filed.

Brief amici curiae of Indian Law Professors filed.

Brief amici curiae of Scholars of the Constitutional Rights and Interests of Children filed.

Brief amici curiae of Center for the Study of Social Policy and National Center for Lesbian Rights filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Government Contracts Professor and Practitioner Richard C. Loeb filed.

SET FOR ARGUMENT on Wednesday, November 4, 2020.

Brief amici curiae of Alan Brownstein, Melissa Rogers, and Rabbi David Saperstein filed.

Joint motion for divided argument filed by respondents.

Brief amici curiae of Amici Miguel Diaz, CHILD USA, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of Legal Scholars in Support of Equality in Support of Respondents filed.

Brief amici curiae of 27 Roman Catholic Lay Persons Supporting Respondents filed.

Motion of the Acting Solicitor General for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for divided argument filed.

Supplemental appendix to city respondents brief on the merits filed (to be recovered - August 20, 2020).

Supplemental appendix to City Respondents' Brief on the Merits filed (8/21/2020).

Brief of city respondents City of Philadelphia, Department of Human Services for the City of Philadelphia, Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations filed.

Brief of intervenor-respondents Support Center for Child Advocates and Philadelphia Family Pride filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Great Lakes Justice Center filed.

Brief amici curiae of Christian Legal Society et al. filed.

Brief amicus curiae of New Civil Liberties Alliance filed. (Distributed)

Brief amici curiae of Former Foster Children and Foster Parents, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of National Jewish Commission on Law and Public Affairs, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of Dorothy Frame, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of Coalition for Jewish Values, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of 76 United States Senators and Members of the House of Representatives filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Galen Black filed.

Brief amici curiae of The States of Texas, Alabama, Arkansa, Llouisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, West Virginia and Commonwealth of Kentucky filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Former Attorney General Edwin Meese III filed.

Brief amici curiae of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, et al. filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Generation Justice filed.

Brief amici curiae of Current and Former State Legislators filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Americans for Prosperity Foundation filed.

Brief amici curiae of New Hope Family Services, Inc. and Catholic Charities West Michigan filed.

Brief amici curiae of United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of James and Gail Blais, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists filed.

Brief amici curiae of Archbishop Jerome E. Listecki and the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee filed.

Brief amici curiae of Life Legal Defense Foundation et al. filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Robertson Center for Constitutional Law filed.

Brief amici curiae of Concerned Women for America, et al. filed.

Brief amicus curiae of The Rutherford Institute filed. (Distributed)

Brief amicus curiae of United States filed.

Brief amici curiae of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Springfield, Illinois, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, et al. filed.

Brief amici curiae of Fifteen Pennsylvania State Senators filed.

Brief amici curiae of States of Nebraska, Arizona, and Ohio filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Eugene Volokh in support of neither party filed.

Brief amici curiae of The Bruderhof, United Sikhs, The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), The Islam & Religious Freedom Action Team of the Religious Freedom Institute, and Asma Uddin filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence filed.

Amicus brief of Foundation for Moral Law not accepted for filing. (June 09, 2020 - Duplicate submission.)

Brief amicus curiae of National Association of Evangelicals filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Foundation for Moral Law filed.

Brief amici curiae of The Institute for Faith and Family, et al. filed.

Joint appendix (two volumes) filed. (Statement of costs filed.)

Brief amicus curiae of Jewish Coalition for Religious Liberty filed.

Brief of petitioners Sharonell Fulton, et al. filed.

Blanket Consent filed by Respondents, City of Philadelphia, Department of Human Services for the City of Philadelphia, Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations.

Motion to extend the time to file the briefs on the merits granted. The time to file the joint appendix and petitioners' brief on the merits is extended to and including May 27, 2020. The time to file respondents' briefs on the merits is extended to and including August 13, 2020.

Motion for an extension of time to file the briefs on the merits filed.

Petition GRANTED.

DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 2/21/2020.

DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/24/2020.

DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/17/2020.

DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/10/2020.

Rescheduled.

DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 12/13/2019.

DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 12/6/2019.

Rescheduled.

DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 11/15/2019.

Reply of petitioners Sharonell Fulton, et al. filed.

Brief of respondents City of Philadelphia, et al. in opposition filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Foundation for Moral Law filed.

Brief amici curiae of 44 United States Senators and Members of the House of Representatives filed.

Brief amici curiae of The States of Texas, et al. filed.

Brief amicus curiae of Jewish Coalition for Religious Liberty filed.

Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted in part; the time is extended to and including October 10, 2019.

Brief amici curiae of Former Foster Children and Foster Parents and the Catholic Association Foundation filed.

Motion to extend the time to file a response from August 26, 2019 to October 25, 2019, submitted to The Clerk.

Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due August 26, 2019)

Parties

Sharonell Fulton, et al., Petitioner, represented by Lori Halstead Windham

Sharonell Fulton, et al., Petitioner, represented by Mark Leonard Rienzi

City of Philadelphia, Department of Human Services for the City of Philadelphia, Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations, Respondent, represented by Neal Kumar Katyal

City of Philadelphia, Department of Human Services for the City of Philadelphia, Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations, Respondent, represented by Deepak Gupta

Intervenor Support Center for Child Advocates and Philadelphia Family Pride, Respondent, represented by Jeffrey L. Fisher

Intervenor Support Center for Child Advocates and Philadelphia Family Pride, Respondent, represented by Leslie Cooper

Amici Curiae

32 Businesses and Organizations, Amicus Curiae, represented by Patricia Bernadette Palacios

ADL (Anti-Defamation League) and Other Organizations as Amici Curiae In Support of Respondents, Amicus Curiae, represented by Gilbert Ross Serota

Alan Brownstein, Melissa Rogers, and Rabbi David Saperstein, Amicus Curiae, represented by Carmine D. Boccuzzi Jr.

American Atheists, Inc., Amicus Curiae, represented by Geoffrey Thomas Blackwell

American Psychological Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Medical Association, American Psychiatric Association, Amicus Curiae, represented by Jessica Ring Amunson

Americans for Prosperity Foundation, Amicus Curiae, represented by Cynthia Fleming Crawford

Amici Curiae 27 Roman Catholic Lay Persons Supporting Respondents, Amicus Curiae, represented by James K. Riley

Amici Miguel Diaz, CHILD USA, et al., Amicus Curiae, represented by Leslie Carol Griffin

Archbishop Jerome E. Listecki and the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee, Amicus Curiae, represented by Richard Michael Esenberg

Baptist Joint Committee For Religious Liberty, The Presiding Bishop Of The Episcopal Church, General Synod Of The United Church Of Christ, and The Evangelical Lutheran Church, Amicus Curiae, represented by David Meir Zionts

Catholic Charities Of Springfield, Illinois, And Catholic Charities Of Joliet, Inc.,, Amicus Curiae, represented by Thomas Gerald Olp

Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence, Amicus Curiae, represented by Anthony Thomas Caso

Center for the Study of Social Policy and National Center for Lesbian Rights, Amicus Curiae, represented by Julie H. Wilensky

Children's Rights, et al., Amicus Curiae, represented by Kendyl Taylor Hanks

Christian Legal Society et al., Amicus Curiae, represented by Harold Douglas Laycock

Church-State Scholars, Amicus Curiae, represented by Rachel Gabriella Shalev

Coalition for Jewish Values, The Call, Lifeline Children’s Services, FaithBridge Foster Care, Prof. Elizabeth Kirk, and Prof. David Smolin, Amicus Curiae, represented by Philip Daniel Williamson

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Amicus Curiae, represented by Michael J. Fischer

Concerned Women for America, et al., Amicus Curiae, represented by Frederick W. Claybrook Jr.

Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, The Association for Biblical Higher Education, and Thirty-One Individual Religious Colleges and Universities, Amicus Curiae, represented by Gene Clayton Schaerr

Current and Former State Legislators, Amicus Curiae, represented by Carson J. Tucker

Dorothy Frame, Annlee Post, & National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, Amicus Curiae, represented by Bruce N. Cameron

Eugene Volokh, Amicus Curiae, represented by Eugene Volokh

Family Equality and PFLAG National, Amicus Curiae, represented by Katherine Keating

Fifteen Pennsylvania State Senators, Amicus Curiae, represented by Randall L. Wenger

First Amendment Scholars, Amicus Curiae, represented by Brianne Jenna Gorod

Former Attorney General Edwin Meese III, Amicus Curiae, represented by Edward Mark Wenger

Former Foster Children and Foster Parents and the Catholic Association Foundation, Amicus Curiae, represented by Andrea Marie Picciotti-Bayer

FosterClub and Former Foster Youth, Amicus Curiae, represented by Jesse Ryan Loffler

Foundation for Moral Law, Amicus Curiae, represented by John Allen Eidsmoe

Freedom From Religion Foundation, et al., Amicus Curiae, represented by Patrick C Elliott

Galen Black, Amicus Curiae, represented by Kelly J. Shackelford

Generation Justice, Amicus Curiae, represented by Alan Gura

GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders and 27 Other LGBTQ Advocacy Groups, Amicus Curiae, represented by Mary L. Bonauto

Government Contracts Professor and Practitioner Richard C. Loeb, Amicus Curiae, represented by Cynthia Cook Robertson

Great Lakes Justice Center, Amicus Curiae, represented by William Wagner

Historians of Child Welfare, Amicus Curiae, represented by Chanakya Arjun Sethi

Indian Law Professors, Amicus Curiae, represented by Jerome C. Roth

James and Gail Blais, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, Amicus Curiae, represented by Todd R. McFarland

Jewish Coalition for Religious Liberty, Amicus Curiae, represented by Howard Nathan Slugh

KidsVoice, Amicus Curiae, represented by David R. Fine

Lawrence G. Sager, Amicus Curiae, represented by Charles Rothfeld

Lee C. Bollinger, Erwin Chemerinksy, Burt Neuborne, Robert C. Post and Geoffrey Stone, Amicus Curiae, represented by Jonathan L. Marcus

Legal Scholars in Support of Equality in Support of Respondents, Amicus Curiae, represented by Kyle Courtenay Velte

Life Legal Defense Foundation et al., Amicus Curiae, represented by Catherine Wynne Short

Local Governments, Mayors, and U.S. Conference of Mayors as Amici Curiae in Support of Respondents, Amicus Curiae, represented by Richard Paul Dearing

Lutheran Child and Family Services of Illinois, Amicus Curiae, represented by Joseph Russell Palmore

Massachusetts, et al., Amicus Curiae, represented by Elizabeth Napier Dewar

Members of Congress, Amicus Curiae, represented by Peter T. Barbur

National Association of Evangelicals, Amicus Curiae, represented by Timothy Belz

National Jewish Commission on Law and Public Affairs, Amicus Curiae, represented by Nathan Lewin

National LGBT Bar Assocation, et al., Amicus Curiae, represented by Sanford Jay Rosen

New Civil Liberties Alliance, Amicus Curiae, represented by Kara McKenna Rollins

New Hope Family Services, Inc. and Catholic Charities West Michigan, Amicus Curiae, represented by Christopher Paul Schandevel

New York State Bar Association, Amicus Curiae, represented by Scott Michael Karson

North American Council on Adoptable Children, National Association of Social Workers, Child Welfare League of America, and American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children, Amicus Curiae, represented by Paul Reinherz Quitman Wolfson

Office of the Cook County Public Guardian, Amicus Curiae, represented by Charles P. Golbert

Organizations Serving LGBTQ Youth, Amicus Curiae, represented by Jennifer C. Pizer

Professors Ira C. Lupu, Frederick Mark Gedicks, William P. Marshall, and Robert W. Tuttle, Amicus Curiae, represented by David Scott Flugman

Prospective Foster Parents Subjected to Religiously Motivated Discrimination by Child-Placement Agencies, Amicus Curiae, represented by Richard Brian Katskee

Ray Mabus, Deborah Lee James, Eric Fanning and the Modern Military Association of America, Amicus Curiae, represented by Michael Evan Bern

Republican Legislators, Elected Officials, and Leaders, Amicus Curiae, represented by James Wayne Kim

Robertson Center for Constitutional Law, Amicus Curiae, represented by Mark D. Martin

Scholars of the Constitutional Rights and Interests of Children, Amicus Curiae, represented by Catherine E. Smith

Scholars Who Study The LGB Population, Amicus Curiae, represented by James Edward Tysse

Service and Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE) and 25 Other Organizations Serving Older and Disabled Individuals, Amicus Curiae, represented by Lauren Suzanne Kuley

States of Nebraska, Arizona, and Ohio, Amicus Curiae, represented by James A. Campbell

The American Bar Association, Amicus Curiae, represented by Judy Perry Martinez

The Annie E. Casey Foundation, The Raikes Foundation, The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, and the Redlich Horwitz Foundation, Amicus Curiae, represented by Clifton S. Elgarten

The Bruderhof, United Sikhs, The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), The Islam & Religious Freedom Action Team of the Religious Freedom Institute, and Asma Uddin, Amicus Curiae, represented by Christopher C. Lund

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, et al., Amicus Curiae, represented by Alexander Dushku

The Institute for Faith and Family and The International Conference of Evangelical Chaplain Endorsers, Amicus Curiae, represented by Deborah Dewart

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and 28 Other Organizations, Amicus Curiae, represented by Todd Steven Anten

The National League of Cities et al., Amicus Curiae, represented by John J. Korzen

The National Women's Law Center and 35 Additional Organizations, Amicus Curiae, represented by Evan Wolfson

The Rev. Gay Clark Jennings, President of the House of Deputies of The Episcopal Church; Rabbinical Assembly; United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, et.al., Amicus Curiae, represented by Jeffrey S. Trachtman

The Rutherford Institute, Amicus Curiae, represented by Michael J. Lockerby

The States of Texas, Alabama, Arkansa, Llouisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, West Virginia and Commonwealth of Kentucky, Amicus Curiae, represented by Kyle Douglas Hawkins

United States, Amicus Curiae, represented by Elizabeth B. Prelogar

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and Pennsylvania Catholic Conference, Amicus Curiae, represented by Eric Nieuwenhuis Kniffin

United States Senators and Members of the House of Representatives, Amicus Curiae, represented by Miles Edward Coleman

 
Last updated: October 15, 2024