Pickett et al. v. Brown et al.
Decided June 6, 1983. William Joseph Brennan Jr. delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 82-5576 · 462 U.S. 1 (1983) · Cited 309 times
Holding
The 2-year limitations period in question denies certain illegitimate children the equal protection of the law guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment.
The Court’s statement of the holding, from the opinion’s syllabus. The syllabus is prepared by the Reporter of Decisions and is not part of the opinion of the Court — read the official opinion for authority.
How the Justices voted
Decided 9–0.
Majority · 9
“Concurring” means agreeing with the outcome; any split shown is the Court’s judgment, not each Justice’s reasoning. Source: the Supreme Court Database (Spaeth et al.), Washington University.
Precedents cited
Supreme Court decisions this opinion relies on, ordered by how often it cites each. Cases in our collection link through; others are named.
- Mills v. Habluetzel · 456 U.S. 91 (1982)
- Gomez v. Perez · 409 U.S. 535 (1973)
- Weber v. Aetna Casualty & Surety Co. · 406 U.S. 164 (1972)
- Trimble v. Gordon · 430 U.S. 762 (1977)
- Mathews v. Lucas · 427 U.S. 495 (1976)
- United States v. Clark · 445 U.S. 23 (1980)
- Levy v. Louisiana Ex Rel. Charity Hospital · 391 U.S. 68 (1968)
- Lalli v. Lalli · 439 U.S. 259 (1978)
- Jimenez v. Weinberger · 417 U.S. 628 (1974)
- Little v. Streater · 452 U.S. 1 (1981)
- Glona v. American Guarantee & Liability Insurance · 391 U.S. 73 (1968)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Clark v. Jeter · 486 U.S. 456 (1988)
- Cardinal Chemical Co. v. Morton International, Inc. · 508 U.S. 83 (1993)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
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William Joseph Brennan Jr.’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court
Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1983). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-07-03. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).