Levy v. Louisiana

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Levy v. Louisiana (1968) is a Supreme Court decision about whether children born outside of marriage can sue for a parent’s wrongful death. Louise Levy, who had five children all born out of wedlock, cared for them at home. After a doctor allegedly harmed her at the Charity Hospital of Louisiana in New Orleans, Levy died. Her children wanted damages for her death and for another unsettled case, but Louisiana law said that only a legitimate child could sue for a parent’s damages. The lower courts dismissed the case, upholding that statute.

The Supreme Court ruled 6–3 that the Louisiana law was unconstitutional. Justice William O. Douglas wrote the majority opinion, joined by Chief Justice Earl Warren and Justices Brennan, White, Fortas, and Marshall. The Court held that the children were “persons” under the Fourteenth Amendment and entitled to its protections. While states may classify people for policy reasons, they may not do so in a way that is unfairly discriminatory against a class. The Court stated that basic civil rights cannot be denied based on whether a child was born in or out of wedlock.

Justice Hugo Black, Justice John Harlan II, and Justice Potter Stewart dissented. Justice Harlan, joined by Black and Stewart, argued that the majority’s reasoning was flawed and that the Louisiana law served a rational purpose by encouraging marriage and formal family relationships.

The decision reversed the lower court rulings and held that illegitimate children may not be barred from recovering damages simply because they are born out of wedlock. This ruling strengthened the rights of children born outside marriage and reinforced the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.