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Valley Forge College v. Americans United - Significance, Taxpayer Standing, Right To Sue, Impact

court amendment petitioner respondent

Petitioner

Valley Forge Christian College

Respondent

Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Inc., et al.

Petitioner's Claim

That donation of a surplus federal facility to a private sectarian college did not violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.

Chief Lawyer for Petitioner

C. Clark Hodgson, Jr.

Chief Lawyer for Respondent

Lee Boothby

Justices for the Court

Warren E. Burger, Lewis F. Powell, Jr., Sandra Day O'Connor, William H. Rehnquist (writing for the Court), Byron R. White

Justices Dissenting

Harry A. Blackmun, William J. Brennan, Jr., Thurgood Marshall, John Paul Stevens

Place

Washington, D.C.

Date of Decision

12 January 1982

Decision

Reversed a court of appeals finding that citizens can sue the government for spending public monies on religious institutions by claiming violation of the First Amendment's Establishment Clause.

Related Cases

  • Frothingham v. Mellow, 262 U.S. 447 (1923).
  • Everson v. Board of Education, 330 U.S. 1 (1947).
  • Flast v. Cohen, 392 U.S. 83 (1968).
  • National Endowment for the Arts v. Finley, U.S. 97=371 (1998).

Further Readings

  • "The Art of Avoidance: Supreme Court Puts on a Good Show, But It May Opt to Not Rule on Merits of a First Amendment Case Involving the NEA," Casper Star-Tribune, April 12, 1998.
  • Biskupic, Joan, and Elder Witt. Guide to the U.S. Supreme Court. Washington, DC: Congressional Quarterly, 1997.

Additional Topics

Valley Forge College v. Americans United - Significance

The Supreme Court found that private taxpayers could not challenge federal spending programs in court without proving specific injuries. Without the show of injury, a requirement basic to the concept of "standing" before the courts, the complaint was considered a general grievance more appropriately directed towards the legislative or executive branches of government. Public pressure mounted for t…

Valley Forge College v. Americans United - Taxpayer Standing

Prior to 1968, citizens claiming general injury as federal taxpayers in opposition to legislation authorizing government spending programs were routinely denied "standing" by the Court. Standing means that only persons considered directly affected by or involved in a dispute may sue in federal court. The persons initiating a suit must demonstrate clearly that they have "suffered some actual or thr…

Valley Forge College v. Americans United - Right To Sue

With Justices Marshall and Blackmun joining in dissent, Justice Brennan strongly protested the majority using "standing to slam the courthouse door against plaintiffs." He believed the Court had far more flexibility in determining standing under the Constitution. Brennan criticized the majority on several issues. First, he believed standing is not lost because many people may claim the same injury…

Valley Forge College v. Americans United - Impact

The Valley Forge case centered on when taxpayers may challenge government spending in courts. As demonstrated by the sharply divided vote, the Court did not easily recognize collective public complaints. Individuals must establish personal standing to represent public interest. Court actions in the 1990s maintained these strict standards for standing. In April of 1998 the Supreme Court heard argum…

Wallace v. Jaffree - Significance, Court Strikes Down "minute Of Silence" Law As Impermissible State Sponsorship Of Religion [next] [back] United States v. Salerno - Significance, Background, Rights Of The Community V. Rights Of The Individual, Further Resistance To The Bail Reform Act

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