Regents of the University of California v Bakke is a 1978 decision of the United States Supreme Court that shaped affirmative action policy in American higher education for decades. Allan Bakke, a white applicant, was twice rejected by the University of California Davis medical school, which set aside a fixed number of seats in each entering class for minority applicants under a special admissions program. A fractured Supreme Court held that rigid numerical racial quotas in university admissions are unconstitutional and ordered Bakkes admission, but a separate majority also held that a university may still consider race as one factor among several in admissions decisions in pursuit of a diverse student body. The compromise reached in the case governed the constitutional limits of affirmative action in university admissions until later decisions revisited the question.
Facts
Decision Year Decision Date HoldingRegents of the University of California v. Bakke, 438 U.S. 265 (1978), was a landmark decision by the Supreme Court of the United States that involved a dispute over whether preferential treatment for minorities could reduce educational opportunities for whites without violating the Constitution. It upheld affirmative action, allowing race to be one of several factors in college admission policy. However, the court ruled that specific racial quotas, such as the 16 out of 100 seats set aside for minority students by the UC Davis School of Medicine, were impermissible. 1 Current StatusQuestions about whether the Bakke case was merely a plurality opinion or binding precedent were addressed in 2003 when the court upheld Powell's position in the majority opinion of Grutter v. Bollinger. However, in 2023, the Supreme Court reversed that position, finding that affirmative action in student admissions impermissibly violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard. 1 Cross-Tradition Connections
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In Legal System
Sources
1. Regents of the University of California v Bakke (Wikipedia)
WikipediaWikipedia infobox, Decided fieldQuote, Wikipedia infobox, Decided field
Decided June 28, 1978
1. Regents of the University of California v Bakke (Wikipedia)
WikipediaWikipedia infobox, Decided field (year)Quote, Wikipedia infobox, Decided field (year)
Decided June 28, 1978
1. Regents of the University of California v Bakke (Wikipedia)
WikipediaWikipedia lead paragraphQuote, Wikipedia lead paragraph
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, 438 U.S. 265 (1978), was a landmark decision by the Supreme Court of the United States that involved a dispute over whether preferential treatment for minorities could reduce educational opportunities for whites without violating the Constitution. It upheld affirmative action, allowing race to be one of several factors in college admission policy. However, the court ruled that specific racial quotas, such as the 16 out of 100 seats set aside for minority students by the UC Davis School of Medicine, were impermissible.
1. Regents of the University of California v Bakke (Wikipedia)
WikipediaWikipedia body text, subsequent developmentsQuote, Wikipedia body text, subsequent developments
Questions about whether the Bakke case was merely a plurality opinion or binding precedent were addressed in 2003 when the court upheld Powell's position in the majority opinion of Grutter v. Bollinger. However, in 2023, the Supreme Court reversed that position, finding that affirmative action in student admissions impermissibly violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard.
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