Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin

Whether race can be used as a factor in a university admission process?

Petitioner is a Caucasian female that was denied admission to the University of Texas at Austin (UT) despite the fact that she had better academic credentials than many minority students that were admitted to the university. Petitioner filed a lawsuit to challenge the use of race as a factor in the admission process. The district court granted summary judgment to UT and the Fifth Circuit affirmed. The Court granted certiorari but vacated and remanded the case to the Fifth Circuit which re-affirmed the use of race in the admission process. In Grutter v. Bollinger the Court held that race could be used as a factor in a “holistic” admission process. 539 U.S. 306 (2003). Petitioner argues that the use of race in admission decisions is neither narrowly tailored nor necessary to achieve a compelling educational interest. Petitioner asks the Court to decide whether the Equal Protection Clause of the 14^th Amendment continues to permit universities to use race as a factor in the admission process.