In the 1996 case M. L. B. v. S.L.J., the U.S Supreme Court ruled that states cannot deny a parent their right to appeal termination of parental rights due to inability to pay court fees, as it violates equal protection and due process clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment. The appellant, an indigent mother from Mississippi (M.L.B.), had her parental rights terminated by state courts but was unable to afford transcript costs for an appeal hearing - which were required under Mississippi law at that time. In a 6-3 decision led by Justice Ginsburg, the court held this requirement unconstitutional because access to judicial review should not be contingent on one's financial status when fundamental issues such as family integrity are at stake.

In the case of M. L. B. v. S. L. J., Justice Thomas, joined by Chief Justice Rehnquist and Justice Scalia, dissented from the majority opinion that a state must provide trial transcripts to indigent parents appealing termination of parental rights decisions if it provides them for other civil cases involving fundamental interests. The dissenting justices argued that there is no constitutional right to appellate review in such cases and thus no requirement for states to provide free transcripts as part of this non-obligatory process; they believed this decision extended beyond what was required by due process or equal protection principles under the Fourteenth Amendment. They also expressed concern about potential consequences including an increase in frivolous appeals and burdens on state resources, suggesting instead that alternative methods could be used to ensure fairness without mandating provision of free transcripts.