The Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act this Term by declaring it unconstitutional. This historic decision has many important implications for the future. Get the facts on where same-sex marriage now stands from Chicago-Kent Professor Katharine Baker, who submitted an amicus brief on behalf of family law professors to the case.
The Supreme Court decided the proponents of Proposition 8 did not have legal standing to challenge the California Supreme Court’s ruling that it was unconstitutional. How did the Court decide? Professor Joan Steinman of IIT Chicago-Kent explains.
The Supreme Court’s decision in Fisher v. University of Texas didn’t make any sweeping declarations on affirmative action. In a 7-1 decision (with Justice Kagan recusing herself), the Court sent the case back to the lower courts. Distinguished Professor Sheldon H. Nahmod, who has argued on civil rights in the Supreme Court, explains what the decision means.
Case: Shelby County v. Holder Last month in Shelby County v. Holder, the Supreme Court struck down a key provision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, a law created to counter discriminatory voting laws. At the time, Congress was concerned that it would be easy for jurisdictions to pass new laws or regulations that … Continue reading After The Decision: The Voting Rights Act
This post, which originally appeared in Nahmod Law, is reposted with permission from the author. The Supreme Court handed down two important decisions on race in this last week of its 2012 Term that have more in common than appears on first reading.
This blockbuster week of Supreme Court decisions brought us two particular rulings of note. In her blog post, ISCOTUS Director and Chicago-Kent College of Law Professor Carolyn Shapiro examines the opinions in cases with a similar result of less federal oversight, but opposite ideological majorities of Justices. The cases: Shelby County v. Holder (Voting Rights … Continue reading Professor Shapiro On A Double Standard In The Court
Case: Shelby County v. Holder One of the most hotly contested cases this Supreme Court Term is Shelby County v. Holder, also known as the Voting Rights Act case. But what is this case about?
If you’re looking to refresh your memory on some of the big cases still awaiting the Supreme Court’s decision, take a look at the videos provided by Chicago-Kent’s Institute on the Supreme Court of the United States (ISCOTUS).
Same-sex marriage
Discover information on the politics, the background, and the issues involved in the two same-sex marriage cases before the Supreme Court in our Deep Dive. These videos discuss the basics of both Hollingsworth v. Perry (the Prop 8 case) and United States v. Windsor (the DOMA case).
Affirmative action
Professors Carolyn Shapiro (ISCOTUS Director and Associate Professor of Law) and Sheldon Nahmod (Distinguished Professor of Law) discuss the details in Fisher v. University of Texas.
The Arguments
The Background
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Case: Hollingsworth v. Perry Adam Liptak of the New York Times has a very interesting and insightful article arguing that the conservative justices were the ones who originally wanted to hear the Prop 8 case.
Case: United States v. Windsor IIT Chicago-Kent faculty discussed the same sex marriage cases at a forum on Wednesday. Watch it here.