Box v. Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky
In brief
The Court overturned the judgment on Question 1 and declined to hear Question 2, but this procedural order did not decide the underlying legal questions or say which side ultimately won.
- Where it stands
- Decided
Decided 9-0 · May 28, 2019
- What it’s about
- The Court unanimously upheld Indiana’s requirement that abortion providers dispose of fetal remains through burial, cremation, or other methods used for human remains, holding that the requirement was rationally related to a legitimate state interest.
- Who it affects
- The order overturned the lower court's judgment on Question 1 and declined to hear Question 2. It did not decide the underlying legal questions or identify a final winner on them.
Summary: written with AI from the case record.
What it's about
The Court declined to review Indiana’s separate ban on abortions sought because of the fetus’s race, sex, or disability, leaving the Seventh Circuit’s ruling against that ban in place.
The case involved two Indiana abortion rules: one governing disposal of embryonic and fetal tissue, and another concerning abortions sought because of race, sex, or disability.
Question presented
1. Whether the court of appeals’ holding that Indiana’s requirements for the disposal of embryonic and fetal tissue fails rational basis review under the Due Process Clause warrants this Court’s review, where there is no meaningful circuit conflict, where a decision by this Court would provide no guidance to the lower courts currently considering more expansive challenges to similar statutes, and where the court of appeals properly applied well-established legal principles in concluding that Indiana’s statutory scheme does not rationally further its asserted interest. 2. Whether the court of appeals’ decision striking down a prohibition on a woman obtaining a pre-viability abortion where Indiana disapproves of her reason for doing so warrants review by this Court, where there is no conflict or even any other decision on the issue among courts of appeals and where the court below applied settled precedent from this Court that bars states from prohibiting women from terminating a pregnancy before viability.
What the Court decided
Holding
Petition GRANTED and Judgment REVERSED as to Question 1 presented by the petition. Petition DENIED as to Question 2 presented by the petition. Opinion per curiam. (Detached Opinion ). Justice Sotomayor would deny the petition for a writ of certiorari as to both questions presented. Justice Thomas, concurring. (Detached Opinion ). Justice Ginsburg, concurring in part and dissenting in part. (Detached Opinion ).
- Result
- Reversed
The vote
- Joined the judgment
- Concurred in a separate opinion
- Wrote an opinion
- Concurring · 2agreed with the result, wrote separately
- Thomaswrote separately
- Ginsburgwrote separately
What's next
The Supreme Court has finished this docket action. The record does not state what further proceedings, if any, occur in the lower courts.
Documents
Docket activity
New analysis added
AI analysis generated: Case Briefing
AI analysis generated: Decision Record
New analysis added
Case data updated: summary, question_presented, generation_metadata
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Opinion added: Opinion
Brief added: Petition
Court Order added: Lower Court Orders/Opinions
More questions
- What issues did Box v. Planned Parenthood involve?
- Question 1 concerned disposal of embryonic and fetal tissue. Question 2 concerned Indiana's ban on abortions sought because of race, sex, or disability.
- What did the Supreme Court do with Question 1?
- It agreed to hear Question 1 and overturned the Seventh Circuit's judgment on it (reversed). This order does not state the legal rule behind that action.
- Did the Supreme Court hear Question 2?
- No. It declined to hear Question 2 (denied review), without endorsing either side's arguments or deciding that legal question.
- Did the Court decide the underlying legal questions?
- No. This procedural order did not decide the underlying legal questions or say which side ultimately won.
- What happens next in Box v. Planned Parenthood?
- The Supreme Court has finished this docket action. This record does not state what further proceedings, if any, occur in the lower courts.
Sources
Primary materials plus reporting. Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.