Senior Associate Dean Amar Comments on Supreme Court Rulings for Public Radio Stations
Vikram Amar, Senior Associate Dean and Professor of Law at UC Davis School of Law, was interviewed on Southern California Public Radio station KPCC regarding the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission as well as its decision to revisit Fisher v. University of Texas. Amar also did a live interview on Northern California public radio station KQED immediately following the Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, which held that the Constitution guarantees the right of same-sex couples to wed.
On June 29, the Court ruled in favor of an Arizona citizens' commission that draws the state's districts. The commission, which came into existence as a result of an anti-gerrymandering initiative, had been challenged on the grounds that only a state legislature may determine electoral processes. "Ruth Bader Ginsberg wrote what I think is a very good opinion, saying that the word ‘legislature' here really refers to the legislative process in the state and can include the people," Amar said in an episode of KPCC's Air Talk.
Amar was also interviewed on Air Talk regarding the Court's decision to revisit Fisher v. University of Texas, a challenge to the university's affirmative action admissions policy. In 2013, the Supreme Court remanded the case to the appellate court with directions to apply strict scrutiny to the race-conscious standards in the admissions program. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled in favor of the university in 2014, prompting the plaintiff to appeal. Although it's unclear why the Supreme Court would agree to revisit the case, "It's not a good signal for supporters of affirmative action," Amar said.
Vikram Amar is a national authority in the fields of constitutional law, civil procedure, criminal procedure, and remedies. His biweekly column for Justia.com, a leading provider of online legal information, centers on his expertise in constitutional law.