Stump et al. v. Sparkman et Vir

Decided March 28, 1978. Byron Raymond White delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 76-1750 · 435 U.S. 349 (1978) · Cited 5,547 times

Holding

The Indiana law vested in the Circuit Judge the power to entertain and act upon the petition for sterilization, and he is, therefore, immune from damages liability even if his approval of the petition was in error.

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 5–3.

“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.

• Bradley v. Fisher · 80 U.S. 335 (1872)
• Pierson v. Ray · 386 U.S. 547 (1967)
• In Re Summers · 325 U.S. 561 (1945)
• Imbler v. Pachtman · 424 U.S. 409 (1976)

Cited by

Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.

• Mireles v. Waco · 502 U.S. 9 (1991)
• Nixon v. Fitzgerald · 457 U.S. 731 (1982)
• Pulliam v. Allen · 466 U.S. 522 (1984)
• Harlow v. Fitzgerald · 457 U.S. 800 (1982)
• Dennis v. Sparks · 449 U.S. 24 (1980)
• Cleavinger v. Saxner · 474 U.S. 193 (1985)
• Will v. Michigan Department of State Police · 491 U.S. 58 (1989)
• Mitchell v. Forsyth · 472 U.S. 511 (1985)
• Butz v. Economou · 438 U.S. 478 (1978)
• Forrester v. White · 484 U.S. 219 (1988)
• Briscoe v. LaHue · 460 U.S. 325 (1983)
• Burns v. Reed · 500 U.S. 478 (1991)
• Felder v. Casey · 487 U.S. 131 (1988)
• Parham v. J. R. · 442 U.S. 584 (1979)
• Supreme Court of Virginia v. Consumers Union of the United States, Inc. · 446 U.S. 719 (1980)
• City of Columbia v. Omni Outdoor Advertising, Inc. · 499 U.S. 365 (1991)

Official text

Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1978). 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).