Shelley v. Kraemer, 334 U.S. 1 (1948) was an important United States Supreme Court civil rights case. The majority opinion was written by Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson.

Facts of the Case

The facts: In 1945, a black family by the name of Shelley purchased a house in St. Louis, Missouri. At the time of purchase, they were not aware that a restrictive covenant had been in place on the property since 1911. The restrictive covenant barred blacks and Asians from owning the property. Neighbors sued to restrain the Shelleys from taking possession of the property they had purchased.

Legal questions

The Court considered two questions. (1) Are (race-based) restrictive covenants legal under the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution? (2) Can they be enforced by a court of law?

Decision of the court

The court held that restrictive covenants are legal because private agreements to exclude persons on the basis of race do not violate the Fourteenth Amendment (the Fourteenth Amendment "erects no shield against merely private conduct, however discriminatory or wrongful").

The Supreme Court held, however, that it is unconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment for the government to enforce such a restrictive covenant. In other words, judicial action is state action.

The case against the covenants was argued by noted civil rights lawyer Charles Hamilton Houston.

External links

• Full text of the decision courtesy of Findlaw.com