More good SCOTUS news: "disparate impact" for fighting housing discrimination upheld 5-4
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/supreme-court-upholds-key-tool-for-fighting-housing-bias/2015/06/25/4fe4e770-1b44-11e5-bed8-1093ee58dad0_story.html
WASHINGTON The Supreme Court handed a surprising victory to the Obama administration and civil rights groups on Thursday when it upheld a key tool used for more than four decades to fight housing discrimination.
The justices ruled 5-4 that federal housing laws prohibit seemingly neutral practices that harm minorities, even without proof of intentional discrimination.
Justice Anthony Kennedy, often a swing vote, joined the courts four liberal members in upholding the use of so-called disparate impact cases.
The ruling is a win for housing advocates who argued that the housing law allows challenges to race-neutral policies that have a negative impact on minority groups. The Justice Department has used disparate impact lawsuits to win more than $500 million in legal settlements from companies accused of bias against black and Hispanic customers.