Article Abstract:
Both the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and the trial court erred in Hopwood v. Texas in refusing to uphold the narrowly-tailored affirmative action program at the University of Texas Law School. The Fifth Circuit rejected precedent when it found that promoting diversity in higher education was not a compelling government interest. The type of affirmative action program that the trial court favored would be vague and would not provide admissions officials with clear guidance. The courts also undervalued the role that public institutions play in promoting minority participation in society.
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Article Abstract:
The Connecticut Supreme Court ruled in Sheff v. O'Neill in 1996 that the state constitution ensured all citizens the opportunity to a substantially equal education and that de facto racial and ethnic segregation denied that opportunity. Since then, some commentators questioned whether integration and improving educational opportunity are compatible. Analysis of Sheff showed that desegregation is necessary to reduce racial isolation and because of the interaction of segregation and poverty.
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Article Abstract:
The Litchfield Law School in Litchfield, Connecticut is the uncelebrated predecessor of Harvard Law School in its modern style of legal instruction. Litchfield's many students were instructed in the formal and systematic manner recognizable by law students today. Insights into the cultural, social, and political underpinnings of American legal instruction can be gained through a study of Litchfield and its near disappearance from and displacement by Harvard Law School in histories.
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