The Supreme Court Considers Affirmative Action: Arguments in the Cases Against Harvard and the University of North Carolina

On October 31, 2022, the Supreme Court heard arguments in two cases addressing admissions in higher education: Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard CollegeandStudents for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina. In each case, lower courts concluded that the universities made permissible, limited use of race to promote student body diversity, in line with Supreme Court precedent holding that institutions of higher education could, in some circumstances, consider race in admissions without running afoul of the Constitution’s equal protection principles. The same petitioner asked the Court in each of the two cases to revisit and expressly overrule those previous holdings. In the alternative, the petitioner asked the Court to hold that the universities violated the constitutional rules established in existing precedent by allegedly overemphasizing race, disadvantaging Asian-American applicants, and rejecting viable race-neutral admissions procedures. This Sidebar considers the Court’s history with racial classifications, the arguments presently before the Court, potential outcomes, and considerations for Congress.