I do not take a position either pro or con race-based admission decisions in this Blog, but rather want to accomplish three different things: In Part I, below, I want to help prepare readers for the case decisions...more
On October 31, the Supreme Court heard the much-anticipated oral arguments in the cases brought by Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) against Harvard University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC),...more
In January 2022, the United States Supreme Court stated that it would hear arguments in Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, through which it will review the role of race in the college...more
On September 30, 2019, the District Court for the District of Massachusetts issued its long-awaited opinion in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, _ F. Supp. 3d. _, 2019 WL 4786210,...more
A few weeks ago, the United States District Court of Massachusetts issued its long-awaited decision in the lawsuit brought by Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. (“SFFA”) against Harvard University (“Harvard”). In a 130-page...more
On September 30, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts found in favor of Harvard College in a lawsuit challenging its consideration of race in undergraduate admissions. In Students for Fair Admission, Inc....more
On May 16, 2019, Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA), an anti-affirmative action group, filed yet another lawsuit against the University of Texas at Austin (the University). This is the third such suit SFFA has filed against...more
Looks like the Department of Education has been busy again this month at the paper shredder. As part of the current administration’s ongoing efforts to eradicate Obama-era guidance that it deems “unnecessary, outdated,...more
The Trump Administration is preparing to focus on affirmative action in college admissions, according to The New York Times, which reportedly obtained an internal announcement to the Department of Justice (DOJ) Civil Rights...more
According to published reports, the Trump administration appears poised to direct the Department of Justice to begin investigating, and potentially litigating against, institutions over what it characterizes as “intentional...more
On June 23, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court held for the second time that race may be taken into account when public universities and colleges admit students. In a 4-3 decision (Justice Kagan recused herself based on her prior...more
Now that the Supreme Court has upheld the use of race as a “factor of a factor of a factor” in the University of Texas’s admissions program, institutions can glean some guidance from the decision to create and administer...more
On June 23, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the University of Texas at Austin’s use of race in its admissions policies and procedures by rendering a decision in the second case brought by Abigail Fisher, a white woman who...more
On June 23, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion for the second time in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, (Fisher II), a case that directly questioned whether race can be considered at all in college...more
On June 23, 2016, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that the race-conscious admission program that a public university used for undergraduate admissions was lawful under the Equal Protection Clause of the...more
On June 23, 2016, in its second trip to the United States Supreme Court, the High Court ruled in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, et al. No. 14-981 (June 23, 2016) that the University of Texas’ (“UT”) race-conscious...more
On June 23, 2016, in its second time hearing Fisher v. University of Texas, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the affirmative action admissions program at the University of Texas at Austin. The Court held that the program is...more
The Supreme Court has rejected a challenge under the Equal Protection Clause to the University of Texas at Austin’s race-conscious admissions program in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin (“Fisher II”). This...more
The U.S. Supreme Court today affirmed the University of Texas at Austin's admissions program, which permits consideration of an applicant’s race as one of a number of factors in admissions decisions. Justice Kennedy authored...more
In a much-anticipated decision, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the University of Texas at Austin's race-conscious undergraduate admissions policy. That policy applies to roughly 25 percent of the incoming class. The other 75...more
On June 20, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, No. 14-981, holding that the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment permits the University of Texas’ use of race-conscious...more
In a 4-3 decision released today, in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, the United States Supreme Court affirmed that the University’s race-conscious admissions policy meets strict judicial scrutiny and is lawful under...more
The first Monday in October is the traditional first day of a new U.S. Supreme Court term. As always, the 2015-16 term will have several cases that are of particular interest to the nation’s employers. Here is a review of...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit decided this week that the University of Texas’s consideration of race as a factor among many factors for college and university admissions is legally permissible in Fisher v....more
Last Friday, the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Justice issued a joint “Dear Colleague Letter” addressing the impact of Fisher v. University of Texas, the recent Supreme Court decision involving the use...more