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Trial challenging constitutionality of corporate board gender quotas is under way

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA RECORD

Thursday, November 21, 2024

Trial challenging constitutionality of corporate board gender quotas is under way

Lawsuits
Fitton

Fitton

A trial challenging the constitutionality of California’s gender quotas for corporate boards of directors is underway.

Judicial Watch sued the Secretary of State in August 2019, on behalf of three California taxpayers, Robin Crest, Earl De Vries, and Judy De Vries, who allege that quotas, created under Senate Bill 826, requiring a company’s board of directors to include women, violate the Equal Protection Clause of the California Constitution.

“It's a straightforward application of the California Constitution that prohibits sex discrimination and taxpayers can't fund that lawlessness,” said Tom Fitton, founder of Judicial Watch. “The issue here is whether the left through the California legislature and politicians are going to blow up 50 years of anti-discrimination law to start imposing quotas.”

The trial began Dec. 1.

“When you're pursuing cases like this, the case proceeding and continuing to trial is good news,” Fitton told the Southern California Record. “It doesn't necessarily predict how the court's going to rule but it further highlights that apparently there's a major issue with the legality of this gender quota.”

Senate Bill (SB) 826, adopted in 2018, requires companies in California to appoint up to three women directors by Dec. 31 contingent on the company’s size.

“The law in California is taxpayers can sue in court to stop the expenditure of tax dollars for unlawful government activity and that's what's going on here,” Fitton said.

As previously reported in the Southern California Record, Judicial Watch’s complaint argues that any expenditure of taxpayer funds or taxpayer-financed resources on gender quotas is illegal.

“Our clients testified and a California state official testified about expenditures, which is part of the case because of taxpayer standing and taxpayer expenditures,” Fitton said. “The judge had some questions for that witness and the government will put on its experts this week.”

SB 826 also requires corporate boards headquartered in California to report to the state how they are meeting the mandates or potentially face fines.

“It sets up a sex quota system in corporate boards that require the boards to engage in sex discrimination for certain seats,” Fitton added. “In fact, under this law, men can't even apply for  certain corporate board positions.”

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