Boy Scouts of America v. Dale
Case Date: 07/10/2025
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Boy Scouts of America et al. v. Dale, 530 U.S. 640 (2000), was a case of the Supreme Court of the United States overturning the New Jersey Supreme Court's application of the New Jersey public accommodations law, which had forced the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) to readmit assistant Scoutmaster James Dale. When he was a student at Rutgers University, Dale became copresident of the Lesbian/Gay student alliance. Then, in July 1990, he attended a seminar on the health needs of lesbian and gay teenagers. During the seminar, he was interviewed, and the work was subsequently published.[1] He was expelled from Scouting after BSA officials read the interview in a local newspaper and Dale was quoted as stating he was gay.[2] The Supreme Court held that the lower court's decision unconstitutionally violated the rights of BSA, specifically the freedom of association, which allows a private organization to exclude a person from membership when "the presence of that person affects in a significant way the group's ability to advocate public or private viewpoints."[3] The court ruled that opposition to homosexuality is part of BSA's "expressive message", and allowing homosexuals as adult leaders would interfere with that message.[4] The case was argued on April 26, 2000[1] and was decided on June 28, 2000.[4]
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