Alabama Legislative Black Caucus v. Alabama
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| Docket No. | Op. Below | Argument | Opinion | Vote | Author | Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13-895 | M.D. Ala. | Nov 12, 2014 | Mar 25, 2015 | 5-4 | Breyer | OT 2014 |
Holding: The district court"s analysis of the racial gerrymandering claim as referring to the state "as a whole," rather than district by district, was legally erroneous; the district court also erred in holding that the Alabama Democratic Conference lacked standing. Moreover, the district court did not properly calculate "predominance" in its alternative holding that race was not the predominant motivating factor in the creation of any of the challenged districts. Finally, the district court"s other alternative holding " that the challenged districts would satisfy strict scrutiny " rests on a misperception of the law: Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act does not require a covered jurisdiction to maintain a particular numerical minority percentage. Instead, it requires the jurisdiction to maintain a minority"s ability to elect a preferred candidate of choice.
Judgment: Vacated and remanded, 5-4, in an opinion by Justice Breyer on March 25, 2015. Justice Scalia filed a dissenting opinion, in which Chief Justice Roberts, and Justices Thomas and Alito joined. Justice Thomas filed a dissenting opinion.
SCOTUSblog Coverage
- Opinion analysis: A small victory for minority voters, or a case with "profound" constitutional implications? (Richard Hasen, March 25, 2015)
- Argument analysis: Hitting the "sweet spot" on race, party, and redistricting? (Richard Hasen, November 12, 2014)
- Argument preview: Racial gerrymandering, partisan politics, and the future of the Voting Rights Act (Richard Hasen, October 30, 2014)
- Petitions of the day (Maureen Johnston, May 21, 2014)
| Date | Proceedings and Orders |
|---|---|
| 01/23/2014 | Statement as to jurisdiction filed. (Response due February 26, 2014) |
| 01/23/2014 | Appendix of Alabama Legislative Black Caucus, et al. filed. |
| 02/04/2014 | Order extending time to file response to statement as to jurisdiction to and including March 28, 2014. |
| 03/24/2014 | Order further extending time to file response to petition to and including April 21, 2014. |
| 04/21/2014 | Motion to dismiss or affirm filed by appellees Alabama, et al. |
| 05/02/2014 | Reply of appellants Alabama Legislative Black Caucus, et al. filed. |
| 05/06/2014 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of May 22, 2014. |
| 05/27/2014 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of May 29, 2014. |
| 06/02/2014 | PROBABLE JURISDICTION NOTED limited to Question 2 presented by the statement as to jurisdiction. Probable jurisdiction is noted in No. 13-1138 limited to Question 1 presented by the statement as to jurisdiction. The cases are consolidated and a total of one hour is allotted for oral argument. |
| 07/10/2014 | Consent to the filing of amicus curiae briefs in support of either party or of neither party, received from counsel for the appellees. |
| 07/22/2014 | The time to file the joint appendix and appellants' briefs on the merits is extended to and including August 13, 2014. |
| 07/22/2014 | The time to file appellees' briefs on the merits is extended to and including October 9, 2014. |
| 08/13/2014 | Brief of appellants Alabama Legislative Black Caucus, et al. filed. |
| 08/13/2014 | Joint appendix filed. VIDED. (Statement of costs filed) |
| 08/15/2014 | Consent to the filing of amicus curiae briefs, in support of either party or of neither party, received from counsel for the appellants. |
| 08/20/2014 | Brief amicus curiae of the United States in support of neither party filed. VIDED. |
| 08/20/2014 | Brief amicus curiae of Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law in support of neither party filed. VIDED. |
| 08/20/2014 | Brief amicus curiae of NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc. filed. VIDED. |
| 08/20/2014 | Brief amici curiae of North Carolina Litigants filed. VIDED. |
| 08/20/2014 | Brief amicus curiae of Brennan Center for Justice at N.Y.U. School of Law filed. VIDED. |
| 09/04/2014 | SET FOR ARGUMENT on Wednesday, November 12, 2014. VIDED. |
| 09/08/2014 | Record requested from U.S.D.C. for Middle District of Alabama. |
| 09/09/2014 | The Record received from U.S.D.C. for Middle District of Alabama is electronic and located on PACER. |
| 09/19/2014 | CIRCULATED |
| 09/24/2014 | Application (14A335) to file a consolidated appellees' brief on the merits in excess of the word limit, submitted to Justice Thomas. VIDED |
| 09/29/2014 | Application (14A335) granted by Justice Thomas to file a consolidated appellees' brief on the merits in excess of the word limit provided that the brief does not exceed 22,500 words. |
| 10/09/2014 | Brief of appellees Alabama, et al. filed. VIDED. (Distributed) |
| 10/15/2014 | Motion for divided argument filed by appellants. VIDED. |
| 10/15/2014 | Motion of the Solicitor General for enlargement of time for oral argument, for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae, and for divided argument filed. VIDED. |
| 10/16/2014 | Brief amici curiae of Speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives and President Pro Tempore of the Alabama Senate filed. VIDED. (Distributed) |
| 10/16/2014 | Brief amici curiae of Pacific Legal Foundation, et al. filed. VIDED. (Distributed) |
| 10/16/2014 | Brief amicus curiae of Dalton J. Oldham filed. VIDED. (Distributed) |
| 10/27/2014 | Reply of appellants Alabama Legislative Black Caucus, et al. filed. (Distributed) |
| 10/30/2014 | Proposal of counsel for the appellees to lodge copies of the complaint in Figgs, et al. v. Quitman County, et al. VIDED |
| 10/31/2014 | Motion for divided argument filed by appellants GRANTED. |
| 10/31/2014 | Motion of the Solicitor General for enlargement of time for oral argument, for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae, and for divided argument GRANTED and the time is to be divided as follows: 30 minutes for appellants, 30 minutes for appellees, and 10 minutes for the Solicitor General as amicus curiae. VIDED |
| 11/12/2014 | Argued. For appellants in 13-895: Eric Schnapper, Seattle, Wash. For appellants in 13-1138: Richard Pildes, New York, N. Y. For United States, as amicus curiae: Donald B. Verrilli, Jr., Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. For appellees: Andrew L. Brasher, Solicitor General, Montgomery, Ala. |
| 01/30/2015 | Motion to file a supplemental brief after argument filed by appellants Alabama Legislative Black Caucus, et al. (Distributed) |
| 02/23/2015 | Motion to file a supplemental brief after argument filed by appellants GRANTED. |
| 02/26/2015 | Motion to file a supplemental brief after argument filed by appellees Alabama, et al. (Distributed) |
| 03/09/2015 | Motion to file a supplemental brief after argument filed by respondent GRANTED. |
| 03/25/2015 | Judgment VACATED and case REMANDED. Breyer, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Kennedy, Ginsburg, Sotomayor, and Kagan, JJ., joined. Scalia, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Roberts, C. J., and Thomas and Alito, JJ., joined. Thomas, J., filed a dissenting opinion. |
| 04/27/2015 | JUDGMENT ISSUED |