Law Commons^™

What’S Hud Got To Do With It?: How Hud’S Disparate Impact Rule May Save The Fair Housing Act’S Disparate Impact Standard, William F. Fuller

Fordham Law Review

Since 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court has granted certiorari three times on the question of whether disparate impact liability is cognizable under the Fair Housing Act (FHA). The first two times, the parties settled. The question is before the Court once again in Texas Department of Housing & Community Affairs v. Inclusive Communities Project, Inc., and this time the parties seem unlikely to settle.

Disparate impact liability in the civil rights context entails liability for actions that have a discriminatory effect, regardless of an actor’s motive. Under the FHA, this can translate into liability for actions that make housing …

Civil Rights - Discrimination In Placement Of Low-Rent Housing- Statute's Requirement That Locality's Governing Body Agree To Cooperate With Hud Used As A Shield To Protect Suburbs From Integration By Low Income Blacks

Fordham Urban Law Journal

The constitutionality of certain sections of the National Housing Act that required a community to consent to the construction of federally assisted low income housing was challenged. The plaintiffs alleged that the consent requirement gave white suburbs the power to bar this construction resulting in limited low incoming housing offered in predominantly black areas. Plaintiffs proposed that a new agreement between the City of Cleveland and the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority be reached that would better reflect low income housing needs. At trial, the court rejected the plaintiff's contentions and on remand, the court held that absent a rational basis, …