In addition to Obamcare: Supreme Court upholds broad discrimination claims under housing law

[joeybee12]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A divided U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday embraced a broad interpretation of the type of civil rights allegations that can be made under the landmark Fair Housing Act by ruling that the law allows for discrimination claims based on seemingly neutral practices that may have a discriminatory effect.

On a 5-4 vote in a major civil rights case, the court handed a victory to civil rights groups and the administration of President Barack Obama, which had backed a Texas nonprofit that claimed the state violated the law by disproportionately awarding low-income housing tax credits to developers who own properties in poor, minority-dominated neighborhoods.

Justice Anthony Kennedy, a conservative who often casts the deciding vote in close cases, joined the court's four liberals in the majority.

The court was considering whether the 1968 law allows for so-called disparate impact claims in which plaintiffs only need to show the discriminatory effect of a particular practice and not evidence of discriminatory intent. There is no dispute over the law's prohibition on openly discriminatory acts in the sale and rental of housing.

http://news.yahoo.com/supreme-court-upholds-broad-discrimination-claims-under-housing-141124553--finance.html

Part of me is wondering if these two rulings affects gay marriage ruling...in that Kennedy may think, hell, I've been liberal enough, let's toss the wingnuts a bone on marriage.

[frazzled]

1. "The Roberts Court’s Surprising Move Leftward"

From the NY Times a few days ago. These two decisions today, plus the (almost assuredly) positive decision on same-sex marriage to come, will indeed make this a surprisingly liberal session for this conservative court.

The Supreme Court under Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. has been a conservative court. But even conservative courts have liberal terms – and the current term is leaning left as it enters its final two weeks.

The court has issued liberal decisions in 54 percent of the cases in which it had announced decisions as of June 22, according to the Supreme Court Database, using a widely accepted standard developed by political scientists. If that trend holds, the final percentage could rival the highest since the era of the notably liberal court of the 1950s and 1960s led by Chief Justice Earl Warren. The closest contenders are the previous term and the one that started in 2004 and ended with the announcement of Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s retirement.

Of course, the justices have yet to rule on seven cases, including the two most closely watched of the term: on same-sex marriage and President Obama's health care law. Most court watchers think a liberal ruling on marriage is coming and are less certain about the health care case.

The court's leftward movement is modest, and it remains well to the right of where it was in the Warren court years, when the percentage of liberal decisions routinely topped 70 percent. Yet the recent numbers do seem suggestive of a shift.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/06/23/upshot/the-roberts-courts-surprising-move-leftward.html?abt=0002&abg=0

[joeybee12]

4. One can hope...

But it will take a few more decisions to think maybe we won't get anymore knee-jerk nutjob decisions.

[1StrongBlackMan]

2. I had been following that case pretty closely ...

as it could have resulted in a horrific decision. Phew!

I think these two decisions, coming out together, bodes well for SSM. But that's purely speculation and just a hunch.

[joeybee12]

3. On race it seems always to be 5-4...

Sometimes you get Kennedy, sometimes not. The other 4 are always hostile.