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42 USC Sec. 1981
01/16/96
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TITLE 42 - THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
CHAPTER 21 - CIVIL RIGHTS
SUBCHAPTER I - GENERALLY
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Sec. 1981. Equal rights under the law
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(a) Statement of equal rights
All persons within the jurisdiction of the United
States shall
have the same right in every State and Territory to make and
enforce contracts, to sue, be parties, give evidence, and to
the
full and equal benefit of all laws and proceedings for the
security
of persons and property as is enjoyed by white citizens, and
shall
be subject to like punishment, pains, penalties, taxes,
licenses,
and exactions of every kind, and to no other.
(b) ''Make and enforce contracts'' defined
For purposes of this section, the term ''make and
enforce
contracts'' includes the making, performance, modification,
and
termination of contracts, and the enjoyment of all benefits,
privileges, terms, and conditions of the contractual
relationship.
(c) Protection against impairment
The rights protected by this section are
protected against
impairment by nongovernmental discrimination and impairment
under
color of State law.
-SOURCE-
(R.S. Sec. 1977; Pub. L. 102-166, title I, Sec. 101, Nov. 21,
1991,
105 Stat. 1071.)
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CODIFICATION
R.S. Sec. 1977 derived from act May 31, 1870, ch.
114, Sec. 16,
16 Stat. 144.
Section was formerly classified to section 41 of
Title 8, Aliens
and Nationality.
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AMENDMENTS
1991 - Pub. L. 102-166 designated existing
provisions as subsec.
(a) and added subsecs. (b) and (c).
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1991 AMENDMENT
Section 402 of Pub. L. 102-166 provided that:
''(a) In General. - Except as otherwise
specifically provided,
this Act (see Short Title of 1991 Amendment note below) and
the
amendments made by this Act shall take effect upon enactment
(Nov.
21, 1991).
''(b) Certain Disparate Impact Cases. -
Notwithstanding any other
provision of this Act, nothing in this Act shall apply to any
disparate impact case for which a complaint was filed before
March
1, 1975, and for which an initial decision was rendered after
October 30, 1983.''
SHORT TITLE OF 1991 AMENDMENT
Section 1 of Pub. L. 102-166 provided that:
''This Act (enacting
section 1981a of this title and sections 60l and 1201 to 1224
of
Title 2, The Congress, amending this section and sections
1988,
2000e, 2000e-1, 2000e-2, 2000e-4, 2000e-5, 2000e-16, 12111,
12112,
and 12209 of this title, and section 626 of Title 29, Labor,
and
enacting provisions set out as notes under this section and
sections 2000e and 2000e-4 of this title, and section 1a-5 of
Title
16, Conservation) may be cited as the 'Civil Rights Act of
1991'.''
SHORT TITLE OF 1976 AMENDMENT
Pub. L. 94-559, which amended section 1988 of
this title, is
known as ''The Civil Rights Attorney's Fees Awards Act of
1976'',
see note set out under section 1988 of this title.
SEVERABILITY
Section 401 of Pub. L. 102-166 provided that:
''If any provision
of this Act (see Short Title of 1991 Amendment note above),
or an
amendment made by this Act, or the application of such
provision to
any person or circumstances is held to be invalid, the
remainder of
this Act and the amendments made by this Act, and the
application
of such provision to other persons and circumstances, shall
not be
affected.''
CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS
Section 2 of Pub. L. 102-166 provided that: ''The
Congress finds
that -
''(1) additional remedies under
Federal law are needed to deter
unlawful harassment and intentional
discrimination in the
workplace;
''(2) the decision of the Supreme
Court in Wards Cove Packing
Co. v. Atonio, 490 U.S. 642 (1989) has
weakened the scope and
effectiveness of Federal civil rights
protections; and
''(3) legislation is necessary to
provide additional
protections against unlawful discrimination in
employment.''
PURPOSES OF 1991 AMENDMENT
Section 3 of Pub. L. 102-166 provided that: ''The
purposes of
this Act (see Short Title of 1991 Amendment note above) are -
''(1) to provide appropriate remedies
for intentional
discrimination and unlawful harassment in the
workplace;
''(2) to codify the concepts of
'business necessity' and 'job
related' enunciated by the Supreme Court in
Griggs v. Duke Power
Co., 401 U.S. 424 (1971), and in the other
Supreme Court
decisions prior to Wards Cove Packing Co. v.
Atonio, 490 U.S.
642 (1989);
''(3) to confirm statutory authority
and provide statutory
guidelines for the adjudication of disparate
impact suits under
title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42
U.S.C. 2000e et
seq.); and
''(4) to respond to recent decisions
of the Supreme Court by
expanding the scope of relevant civil rights
statutes in order to
provide adequate protection to victims of
discrimination.''
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY FOR 1991 AMENDMENT
Section 105(b) of Pub. L. 102-166 provided that:
''No statements
other than the interpretive memorandum appearing at Vol. 137
Congressional Record S 15276 (daily ed. Oct. 25, 1991)
shall be
considered legislative history of, or relied upon in any way
as
legislative history in construing or applying, any provision
of
this Act (see Short Title of 1991 Amendment note above) that
relates to Wards Cove - Business necessity/cumulation/alternative
business practice.''
CONSTRUCTION OF 1991 AMENDMENT
Section 116 of title I of Pub. L. 102-166
provided that:
''Nothing in the amendments made by this title (enacting
section
1981a of this title and amending this section, sections 1988,
2000e, 2000e-1, 2000e-2, 2000e-4, 2000e-5, 2000e-16, 12111,
and
12112 of this title, and section 626 of Title 29, Labor)
shall be
construed to affect court-ordered remedies, affirmative
action, or
conciliation agreements, that are in accordance with the
law.''
ALTERNATIVE MEANS OF DISPUTE RESOLUTION
Section 118 of title I of Pub. L. 102-166
provided that: ''Where
appropriate and to the extent authorized by law, the use of
alternative means of dispute resolution, including settlement
negotiations, conciliation, facilitation, mediation,
factfinding,
minitrials, and arbitration, is encouraged to resolve
disputes
arising under the Acts or provisions of Federal law amended
by this
title (enacting section 1981a of this title and amending this
section, sections 1988, 2000e, 2000e-1, 2000e-2, 2000e-4,
2000e-5,
2000e-16, 12111, and 12112 of this title, and section 626 of
Title
29, Labor).''
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SECTION REFERRED TO IN OTHER SECTIONS
This section is referred to in sections 1981a,
1988 of this
title; title 2 sections 1202, 1311.