Stanton v. Stanton
"Stanton v. Stanton" is a landmark Supreme Court case that addressed gender discrimination in child support laws. The case arose when Thelma Stanton challenged a Utah law that mandated different maximum ages for child support based on the gender of the child, setting the limit at eighteen for females and twenty-one for males. The Utah Supreme Court upheld this statute, reasoning that it reflected differences in maturation between genders. However, the U.S. Supreme Court, in an 8-1 decision, ruled that the law violated the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Justice Harry A. Blackmun, writing for the majority, applied the rational basis test and found no justifiable rationale for the age disparity. In dissent, Justice William H. Rehnquist argued that the matter was not appropriately before the Court, as the age limits were established in the divorce agreement. The ruling is significant for its implications on gender equality and child support laws, highlighting ongoing issues of discrimination in legal frameworks.
Stanton v. Stanton
Date: April 15, 1975
Citation: 421 U.S. 7
Issue: Sex discrimination
Significance: The Supreme Court voided a child support statute as a violation of the equal protection clause.
Utah’s highest court of appeals upheld a state law setting the maximum age for child support for males at twenty-one and females at eighteen, finding women matured faster than men. Thelma Stanton sued her former husband after he stopped paying child support when their daughter turned eighteen. By an 8-1 vote, the Supreme Court voided the statute as a violation of the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. In the opinion for the Court, Justice Harry A. Blackmun claimed the Court had used the rational basis test in this sex discrimination case. Nonetheless, the Court found the statute lacking in a rational basis although other judges and legislators had found it rational. Justice William H. Rehnquist dissented saying that the issue was not properly before the Court because the age limit had been set voluntarily in the divorce decree.
