Racial quotas in educational institutions violate the Equal Protection Clause, but a more narrowly tailored use of race in admission decisions may be permissible. (Partially overruled by Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (2023)) Decided June 28, 1978 (argued October 12, 1977). Opinion of the Court: Powell (Parts I and V–C) Applied: the Fourteenth Amendment → go there Topic: Discrimination based on race and ethnicity. Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, 438 U.S. 265 (1978), was a landmark decision by the Supreme Court of the United States that involved a dispute over whether preferential treatment for minorities could reduce educational opportunities for whites without violating the Constitution. It upheld affirmative action, allowing race to be one of several factors in college admission policy. However, the court ruled that specific racial quotas, such as the 16 out of 100 seats set aside for minority students by the UC Davis School of Medicine, were impermissible. Wiki link