October 16th, 2018

US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Opinions
Smith v. School Board of Concordia Parish

Docket: 17-30548
Opinion Date: October 15, 2018
Judge: Stephen Andrew Higginson
Areas of Law: Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Education Law

A party is bound by the terms of a consent decree that it voluntarily entered. The Fifth Circuit mostly affirmed the district court's judgment finding that Delta had violated a consent decree requiring Delta to comply with a desegregation order that it had voluntarily entered into. In this case, the desegregation requirements arose out of and served to resolve a longstanding desegregation effort in Concordia Parish properly overseen by the district court; were within the scope of the case; and furthered the equal protection objectives of the original complaint. The court rejected Delta's alternative argument that the district court's order granting further relief exceeded its remedial authority. Finally, the court vacated a portion of the district court's order requiring Delta to obtain authorization before enrolling students from other parishes under separate desegregation orders.

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