Supreme Court Preview: 2012-2013 Term

A number of cases that the Supreme Court will hear in its new 2012-2013 Term could have a significant impact on women’s legal rights, while the implications of last Term’s decisions for women continue to reverberate. This Term, the Court’s review of affirmative action policies in state university admissions presents the troubling possibility that a majority of the Court will vote to turn back the clock, given that Justice O’Connor, a key vote in the Court’s 2003 decision upholding affirmative action in admissions (and its author), has since left the Court. The progress of women in education, as well as minorities, has been helped over the years by the availability of affirmative action programs. In addition, women’s advocates are participating in cases interpreting the Court’s prior precedents on protections against sexual harassment and raising issues related to class action litigation. Given the success of corporate interests before the Court during Chief Justice Roberts’ tenure, to the detriment of individual rights, these cases bear close scrutiny. Finally, in addition to the cases that the Court has already decided to review, the Court is considering whether to hear cases challenging the constitutionality of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act and cases implicating marriage equality, both of which have the potential to affect women in profound ways.

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Supreme Court Preview: 2012-2013 Term