Civil rights case docket
Summaries of our current and historical civil rights cases.
A rich history of litigating important civil rights cases.
Our cases have smashed remnants of Jim Crow segregation; fought against voter suppression; destroyed some of the nation鈥檚 most notorious white supremacist groups; and upheld the rights of minorities, children, women, people with disabilities, and others who faced discrimination and exploitation. Many of our cases have changed institutional practices, stopped government or corporate abuses, and set precedents that helped thousands.
Currently, our litigation is focused on several major areas: voting rights, children鈥檚 rights, economic justice, immigrant justice, 人兽性交 rights, and mass incarceration.
We have also filed amicus 鈥渇riend-of-the-court鈥 briefs to support litigation from other organizations that are doing similar work.
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- Eliminating Poverty and Economic Inequality
Association for the Preservation of the Eatonville Community, Inc. v. School Board of Orange County, Florida
The Southern Poverty Law Center has filed a new lawsuit against the school board of Orange County, Florida, on behalf of the Association to Preserve the Eatonville Community, Inc. (PEC) to protect the Robert Hungerford Preparatory High School property. The lawsuit alleges that the Orange County School Board is selling that historic land after secret negotiations in violation of…
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- Eliminating Poverty and Economic Inequality
P.A., et al. v. St. Tammany Parish School Board, et al.
The Southern Poverty Law Center and the Stuart H. Smith Law Clinic at Loyola University New Orleans filed an appeal challenging the decision of the St. Tammany Parish School Board in Louisiana severely limit a disabled student鈥檚 classroom instruction time and restrict their interactions with other students. The appeal aims to reverse a Louisiana administrative…
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- Eliminating Poverty and Economic Inequality
Inman-Johnson, et al. v. City of Tallahassee
The Southern Poverty Law Center and American Civil Liberties Union of Florida filed a lawsuit against the City of Tallahassee for its 鈥渇ire services fee,鈥 alleging that it operates as an unconstitutional form of taxation not authorized by law. The lawsuit asserts that this fee is collected as a hidden charge on monthly utility bills…
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- Eliminating Poverty and Economic Inequality
Glasper v. Wells
The Southern Poverty Law Center filed a federal complaint against Mississippi to stop the state from misusing and withholding federal funds provided by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to the city of Jackson to address its ongoing water crisis. The suit argues Mississippi refused to allocate these funds when the city needed them most…
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- Eliminating Poverty and Economic Inequality
O.L., et al., v. Cobb County School District, et al.
In March 2020, while a 7th grade middle school student, O.L. suffered a severe and tragic medical condition that left her unable to effectively communicate and perform self-care tasks, like dressing, feeding, and traveling outside of her home. O.L.鈥檚 mother pleaded with the school district to provide O.L. with reasonable accommodations, so that O.L. could effectively communicate and access her public education. …
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- Eliminating Poverty and Economic Inequality
Anaria Cabrera, et al. v. U.S. Department of Labor
After the Trump administration announced the suspension of the Job Corps program and that all 99 of its centers would close, the Southern Poverty Law Center and Public Citizen Litigation Group filed a federal lawsuit opposing the action as an illegal shutdown of the program. The lawsuit describes how on May 29, 2025, the U.S.…
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- Eliminating Poverty and Economic Inequality
- Ending Unjust Imprisonment
Baez v. Dixon
The Southern Poverty Law Center and Florida Justice Institute filed federal and state lawsuits on behalf of an incarcerated man who suffered abuse at the hands of the Florida Department of Corrections (FDC). Following a settlement awarded to the man for his injuries, FDC enforced a six-figure lien against him. The suits argue that FDC鈥檚…
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- Eliminating Poverty and Economic Inequality
K.B. v. Cobb County School District
The Southern Poverty Law Center challenged the unlawful expulsion of K.B., a Black student with disabilities in the Cobb County School District (CCSD) who should be a high school senior in the 2025-26 school year. K.B. was expelled for two years for alleged behavior that occurred outside of school, under the district鈥檚 far-reaching off-campus conduct…
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- Eliminating Poverty and Economic Inequality
Rushing v. Sanders
The Southern Poverty Law Center聽(人兽性交) filed a class action complaint (formerly George v. Sanders) with the National Housing Law Project聽(NHLP) and civil rights attorney William Patrick Quigley on behalf of a tenant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, against a justice of the peace in East Baton Rouge Parish. The complaint states that Louisiana law creates an…
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- Eliminating Poverty and Economic Inequality
Scott, et al., v. Louisiana State Police, et al.
Amid evictions of unhoused people from encampments in public spaces in New Orleans, the Southern Poverty Law Center joined a case to protect unhoused people from this effort by state authorities. Ahead of major events held at the Caesars Superdome in October and November 2024, the Louisiana State Police and the state鈥檚 Department of Wildlife…