Grutter v. Bollinger

Grutter v. Bollinger, 539 U.S. 306 (2003), is a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court.

Barbara Grutter, a white applicant with a 3.8 GPA and 161 LSAT score, was rejected from the University of Michigan Law School. The law school considered race as one factor among many to achieve a ‘critical mass’ of minority students. Grutter sued, arguing the policy violated the Equal Protection Clause.

Significance

Justice O’Connor’s 5-4 opinion upheld the law school’s race-conscious admissions policy, reaffirming Bakke’s diversity rationale. The Court found that the policy was narrowly tailored because it used a holistic, individualized review rather than quotas. O’Connor expressed an expectation that ‘25 years from now, the use of racial preferences will no longer be necessary.’ The decision was overruled by Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (2023), which held that race-based admissions violate the Equal Protection Clause.

Category

US Federal Case Law