MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS

摘要

Reuters reported on June 25, 2015, that a divided U.S. Supreme Court embraced a broad interpretation of the type of civil rights allegations that can be made under the landmark Fair Housing Act (FHA) by ruling that the law allows for discrimination claims based on seemingly neutral practices that may have a discriminatory effect. On a 5-4 vote in a major civil rights case, the court handed a victory to civil rights groups and the administration of President Barack Obama, which had backed a Texas nonprofit that claimed the state violated the law by disproportionately awarding low-income housing tax credits to developers who own properties in poor, minority-dominated neighborhoods. Justice Anthony Kennedy, a conservative who often casts the deciding vote in close cases, joined the court's four liberals in the majority.