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The Supreme Court’S Surprising And Strategic Response To The Civil Rights Act Of 1991, Michael Selmi
The Supreme Court’S Surprising And Strategic Response To The Civil Rights Act Of 1991, Michael Selmi
GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works
This essay, which was prepared for a symposium issue in recognition of the twentieth anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1991, explores the Supreme Court’s response to the Congressional repudiation of its cases reflected in the 1991 Act. Relying on a positive political theory framework, I demonstrate that the Court appears to have responded in a strategically sophisticated manner designed to insulate their decisions from Congressional reversal. The 1991 Act reversed or modified eight Supreme Court decisions, and reflected concern regarding the conservative turn the Court had taken in discrimination cases. After the passage of the Act, plaintiffs have …