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What is a summary of the Regents of the University of California v Bakke case?
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
Summary
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke is a 1978 United States Supreme Court case, which challenged affirmative action quotas. The Supreme Court decided that racial quotas were not acceptable, but race could be a factor in determining admission to college.
Detail
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, (1978) started when Allan Bakke applied to the University of California Medical School at Davis in 1973 and 1974. He was rejected both years.
The school policy said for every hundred students admitted sixteen of the students must be minority students. Bakke's qualifications (scores and GPA) were higher than every one of the minority students admitted during both of the years that he applied but he was overlooked so that the minority quotas were filled.
He took the school to court saying that the school's actions violated the 14th amendment's equal protection clause and Title VI of California's Civil Rights Act of 1964. He argued that the university had overlooked him solely on the basis race. The case went from the California courts (who ruled in favor of Bakke) to the Supreme Court.
There was no single majority opinion. Justices Burger, Stewart, Rehnquist, and Stevens said that whether or not race could be used in admissions processes was not an issue for the Supreme Court. They said that the issue was if the university's special admissions program was unconstitutional.
These justices ruled that the school had discriminated against Bakke, which violated the Fourteenth Amendment equal protection clause. According to them, the program was unconstitutional. Justices Brennan, White, Marshall, and Blackmun said that the university did not violate the constitution when it used race as a factor for admission to their school because it was used to remedy the under-representation of minority groups.
These four justices thought that the university violated Title VI of California's Civil Rights Act of 1964. They argued that the quota system let minority groups have guaranteed representation into the school. The ninth judge, Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr., ruled that the use of race as an admissions factor was acceptable if it was not the only or the deciding factor in an admissions process. He also ruled that Bakke was discriminated against because the university had denied him admission solely because of his race.
His decisions were based on the fourteenth amendment's equal protection clause. Since the university could not prove that factors besides Bakke's race had made him less qualified then the minority candidates, the school had to admit him.
Powell wrote the majority opinion, which said the university had discriminated against Bakke but race could be used as an admissions criterion. All the other justices wrote opinions as well to back up what part of Powell's case they supported.
Case Citation:
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, 438 U.S. 265 (1978)
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
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Why did Allan Bakke sue in the Regents of the University of California v Bakke case?
Allan Bakke claimed he was a victim of reverse discrimination.
Which U.S. Supreme Court decision made it illegal to achieve diversity through the use of racial quotas?
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978)
Which supreme court decision struck down the quota system?
Regents of University of California v. Bakke
How did Regents of the University of California v Bakke change affirmative-action programs?
Regents of the University of California vs Bakke affirmed affirmative action by ruling it as entirely constitutional. This allowed for affirmative action programs to have a clear set of laws and regulations regarding their behavior and rights.
What was the US Supreme Court case that declared affirmative action racial quotas unconstitutional?
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
What court case said racial quota. systems are unconstitutional?
University California vs. Bakke or the bakke case
Who won the case of regents v bakke?
Bakke won, he was accepted into the school.
What was Bakke v. Regents of the University of California supreme court decision in 1978?
In the 1978 case Bakke v. Regents of the University of California, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the use of racial quotas in college admissions was unconstitutional. The Court also held that affirmative action programs could be used as long as race was not the sole factor in decision making. This decision has had a significant impact on affirmative action policies in education.
What court case said racial quotas are unconstitutional?
University California vs. Bakke or the bakke case
What court case racial quota system are unconstitutional?
University California vs. Bakke or the bakke case
What court said racial quota systems are unconstitutional?
University California vs. Bakke or the bakke case
What is university of California regents v. Bakke?
In Bakke v Regents of the University of California, Alan Bakke, who had applied to the University and been rejected, sued the Regents claiming that his civil rights as a white had been denied by the University's policy of affirmative action for non--white applicants. Affirmative action, he argued, violated the Civil RIghts Act of 1964, which forbids racial discrimination by the federal government or any program (such as a state university) that receives federal funding. The Supreme Court held that affirmative action was constitutionally allowed so long as race was only one of several factors taken into account by admissions officers, but that strict quotas that could apply regardless of qualifications violated the law.
