Lalli v. Lalli

Summary

The Court affirmed the New York Court of Appeals, holding that New York’s § 4‑1.2 requirement that an illegitimate child obtain a judicial order of filiation during the father’s lifetime is substantially related to the state’s interest in the orderly disposition of intestate estates and therefore does not violate the Equal Protection Clause. A dissent argued the statute is unconstitutional, and two concurrences joined the judgment while expressing differing views on Trimble.