Cooper v. Aaron
View opinion on Lexis AdvanceFacts:
Petitioners, school authorities from Little Rock, AR, asked to postpone their plan to de-segregate their school because it might cause turmoil.
Procedural History:
District court granted the requested delay.
Court of appeals reversed.
Issue:
Are Supreme Court decisions finding laws unconstitutional binding on those not parties to the case?
Petitioner's Argument:
The Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education does not apply here, because petitioners were not parties to that case.
Reasoning:
It is the courts' job to say what the law is. If states can ignore the judgments of the courts and the rights granted thereby, then the the Constitution becomes a mockery. The state governments were become the supreme law of the land, not the Constitution.
Holding:
Yes, state officials are all bound by Supreme Court decisions, even if they are not parties to the suits.