Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association v. Brentwood Academy (551 U.S. 291)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided June 21, 2007 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 551 U.S. 291 · 127 S. Ct. 2489
- Decided
- June 21, 2007
- Term
- October Term 2006
- Vote
- 9–0
- Majority author
- Justice Stevens
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Conservative
Opinion excerpt
Justice Stevens announced the judgment of the Court and delivered the opinion of the Court with respect to Parts I, II-B, III, and IV, and an opinion with respect to Part II-A, in which Justice Souter, Justice Ginsburg, and Justice Breyer join. The principal issue before us is whether the enforcement of a rule prohibiting high school coaches from recruiting middle school athletes violates the First Amendment. We also must decide whether the sanction imposed on respondent for violating that rule was preceded by a fair hearing. I Although this case has had a long history, the relevant facts may be stated briefly. The Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) is a not-for-profit membership corporation organized to regulate interscholastic sports among its members, which include some 290 public and 55 private high schools in Tennessee. Brentwood Academy is one of those private schools. Since the early 1950’s, TSSAA has prohibited high schools from using “undue influence” in recruiting middle school students for their athletic programs. In April 1997, Brent-wood’s football coach sent a letter to a group of eighth-grade boys inviting them to attend spring practice sessions. See App. 119. The letter explained that football equipment would be distributed and that “getting involved as soon as possible would definitely be to your advantage.” Ibid. It was signed ‘Tour…
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