Virginia Military Institute v. United States

Background

The case involves the Virginia Military Institute, a state military college, and a legal challenge to its long-standing men-only admissions policy. The petition asked the Supreme Court to take the case now, before the litigation below reached a final outcome. Justice Thomas took no part in considering or deciding the petition, and Justice Scalia wrote a brief opinion respecting the denial of the petition.

Reasoning

Justice Scalia explained that the key question—whether a State may constitutionally maintain an all-male military school—deserves the Court’s attention, but not before lower courts finish deciding the case. The Court of Appeals had vacated a prior judgment and sent the matter back to the district court to determine an appropriate remedy. The appeals court expressly declined to mandate a single remedial path and suggested that remedies other than forcing the school to abandon its admissions policy might be permissible. Citing longstanding practice, Scalia said the Supreme Court generally waits for a final judgment in the lower courts before stepping in and, on that basis, denied the early review.

Real world impact

Because the Supreme Court refused early review, the school’s admissions policy remains in place for now while the lower courts work out remedies. The Court did not decide the constitutional question on the merits, so the issue could return to the Supreme Court after a final decision below. The denial lets the district court shape any remedy first and preserves the possibility that the school or its challengers may seek Supreme Court review later.