The conservative-majority Supreme Court is expected to strike down or severely restrict race-based college admissions programs in June. With it comes a ripple effect in corporate America, potentially upending diversity programs, which my colleague Trey Williams and I explore in Fortune’s upcoming June/July issue.
If the justices forbid educational institutions from using race as a factor in admissions decisions, it could “augur where the court might go with respect to certain programs for private employers,” says Kevin Cloutier, a partner at the Sheppard Mullin law firm’s labor, employment, and business trial practice group. Courts could rule affirmative action programs unconstitutional for federal contractors or be more receptive to reverse discrimination claims against private companies.
