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Legal Disclaimer
General Injustice
What, one might ask, is a category of cases such as general injustice? Well, we choose to put into this category cases in which the public opinion and even the courts may not be favorable to the case, cases in which the court may have finally spoken, but in which the outcome is nonetheless wrong. Often, it can take a generation, or longer, for justice to be done in these cases, and it may take concerted efforts in different courts for justice to be obtained.
Virgil Hawkins and the University of Florida
The picture below, a picture of Virgil Hawkins, is illustrative of this type of case. In 1949 Virgil Hawkins applied to the law school at the University of Florida, but for years, on one pretext or another, the courts denied his cause; the real reason his case was denied is that he was Black. He was never admitted to the law school. In 1958 he agreed to withdraw his application if the University would admit other Black students, and that year Black students entered its law and graduate schools. He opened the door for others to be admitted without reference to race. He earned his law degree elsewhere, and in 1976, almost a generation after he first applied, the Florida Supreme Court ordered him admitted to The Florida Bar.
School Choice
Another case I would put in this category is one of the civil rights cases of the 21st century, the cause of students who want an opportunity to attend the school of their choice, whether it is public or private. In Florida, in Bush v. Holmes, 919 So. 2d 392 (Fla. 2006), the courts denied students in failing schools this opportunity on tenuous legal grounds, but the final chapter has not been written: since 2023, Florida law has made every student who is eligible to attend a public school eligible for a scholarship to attend a private one. I hope in twenty years that law students will look back on such rulings as Bush v. Holmes with as much bemusement as the logic of the Virgil Hawkins cases now receives.
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Please contact us if you believe you are involved in a case, or have a situation in which your position, although perhaps unpopular, is a correct position, and should ultimately prevail. Call 850-567-8445, email Info@woodringlawfirm.com, or use the contact form on this page.
