2011 Amicus Briefs
B.H. et al v. Easton Area School District – Pennsylvania Supreme Court. Brief submitted by Women’s Law Project. First Amendment case in which two middle school students were banned from wearing bracelets promoting breast cancer awareness in school. The brief argued that the ban harmed young women by perpetuating stereotypes and discriminatory attitudes about and toward girls and boys. (B.H. v. Easton Area School District WLP Amicus Brief)
Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien v. Mayor and City Council – United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Brief submitted by Maryland NARAL. Case involved challenge to the Baltimore City ordinance requiring crisis pregnancy centers to post signs stating that abortion services are not provided. Brief argued there is a compelling interest in protecting women from deceptive advertising practices. (O’Brien v. Mayor and City Council MDNARAL Amicus Brief)
Dukes v. Walmart – Supreme Court of the United States. Brief submitted by National Women’s Law Center and ACLU. Issue involved whether claims that Walmart discriminates against women in pay and promotions can proceed as a nationwide class action. Brief argued that class actions are essential to addressing the pervasive sex discrimination in pay and promotions. It outlined the history and severity of pay discrimination and explained the difficulties in detecting inequities and in making individual complaints, making class actions necessary to remedy discrimination. (Dukes v. Walmart NWLC Amicus Brief)
Biediger et al. v. Quinnipiac – Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Brief submitted by National Women’s Law Center. Case involved application of Title IX. Brief addressed the meaning of substantial proportionality under the first prong of Title IX’s three-part participation test, the problem of deceptive practices in schools’ reporting of their participation numbers, issuing regarding counting cheerleading and other emerging sports under Title IX and the benefits of sports for women. (Biediger v. Quinnipiac NWLC Amicus Brief)