United States Court of Appeals For the First Circuit - SFFA v. Harvard College

Background:

The case was appealed from a lower-court ruling which validated the race-conscious admissions policy, and for more than 40 years, the U.S. Supreme Court has held that it is lawful for universities to have an admissions plan that considers race as one of many factors. The court notes on page 63 of the decision: "Harvard's interest in student body diversity and its consideration of race to attain it is also not unique. Many other colleges and universities consider an applicant's race, in addition to many other factors, in admissions. And the business community has communicated its interest in having a well-educated, diverse hiring pool both in this case and in the prior governing Supreme Court cases."