Shelley v. Kraemer

E18225

Shelley v. Kraemer is a landmark 1948 U.S. Supreme Court case that held courts could not enforce racially restrictive housing covenants, marking a major civil rights victory against residential segregation.


Statements (50)
Predicate Object
instanceOf United States Supreme Court case
housing discrimination case
landmark civil rights case
areaOfLaw civil rights law
constitutional law
property law
arguedDate 1948-01-15
citation 334 U.S. 1
68 S. Ct. 836
92 L. Ed. 1161
constitutionalProvision Equal Protection Clause
Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
court Supreme Court of the United States
decidedWith McGhee v. Sipes
decisionDate 1948-05-03
docketNumber 72
fullCaseName J.D. Shelley et ux. v. Louis Kraemer et ux.
historicalContext pre–Brown v. Board of Education civil rights jurisprudence
holding Judicial enforcement of racially restrictive covenants constitutes state action within the meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment
State courts may not enforce racially restrictive covenants on real estate
impact expanded the concept of state action to include judicial enforcement of private agreements
limited the legal enforceability of racially restrictive covenants in the United States
marked a major civil rights victory against residential segregation
joinedBy Felix Frankfurter
Frank Murphy
Harold H. Burton
Hugo L. Black
Robert H. Jackson
Stanley F. Reed
Tom C. Clark
William O. Douglas
jurisdiction United States
legalIssue enforceability of racially restrictive covenants
state action under the Fourteenth Amendment
locationOfProperty St. Louis, Missouri
majorityOpinionBy Fred M. Vinson
opinionType unanimous decision in relevant part
party Ethel Shelley
Fern Kraemer
J.D. Shelley
Louis Kraemer
precedentFor cases challenging racially discriminatory housing practices
later civil rights litigation concerning state action
rearguedDate 1948-02-09
recognizedAs landmark decision in U.S. civil rights history
relatedCase Buchanan v. Warley
Corrigan v. Buckley
subjectMatter racially restrictive housing covenants
residential segregation
term 1947 Term

Referenced by (6)

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