Under Court precedents, institutions of higher education may use race as one among many factors in an individualized and holistic review of each candidate for admission, in order to help achieve the educational benefits that come from a broadly diverse student body. This case tests whether the Court should overrule or narrow this long-standing standard.
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In the wake of the 2020 census, Alabama enacted a map for its seven congressional districts. The map included just one district where racial minorities constituted a majority, even though Black residents constitute 27 percent of Alabama’s population, and even though the state could have drawn a second majority-minority district using traditional districting criteria. Plaintiffs sued, arguing that the districting scheme violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.
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ABA supports ruling that upholds Section 2 of Voting Rights Act
In November 2021, the North Carolina legislature adopted a new map for its congressional districts. The North Carolina Supreme Court ruled that the map violated the state constitution; however, and pursuant to state law, a lower state court issued a temporary replacement map. State legislative leaders and other state officials challenged the state-courts’ power to override the legislature’s congressional map, arguing that the state-courts’ actions violated the Elections Clause in the U.S. Constitution.
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ABA applauds decision that rejects “independent state legislature” theory
To ensure that federal student loan borrowers were not in a worse position as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the secretary of education granted up to $20,000 in student loan forgiveness to eligible federal student loan borrowers. Six states and two student loan borrowers, who did not qualify for maximum relief, sued in separate lawsuits, arguing that the secretary lacked authority for his action. The secretary countered that the plaintiffs lacked standing, and that relief was authorized by the federal Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003, the HEROES Act.
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