U.S. Supreme Court Rules On Michigan Affirmative Action Programs

On June 23, 2003, the United States Supreme Court issued two decisions addressing the constitutionality of affirmative action programs under the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution. In the law school admissions case, the Court determined that consideration of race as one of many "plus" factors in selecting candidates for law school admission was constitutionally permissible; in the university admission case, the Court held that the granting of a specific number of extra points to an applicant based solely on the minority candidate's race violated equal protection guarantees. While the decisions open the door for public educational institutions, and possibly other public entities, to utilize race-conscious selection processes, they are likely to have limited, direct legal impact in California due to the constitutional amendment enacted by Proposition 209, which expressly prohibits public entities from granting preferential treatment to any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education or public contracting. Copies of the Court's decisions are downloadable from the links below.

GRUTTER V. BOLLINGER 
Click here for the page which includes the downloadable version.

GRATZ V. BOLLINGER 
Click here for the page which includes the downloadable version.