Authors

Patrick J. LaBella, William & Mary Law School

Tax Collectors for Fair Admissions: Advancing State-Level Tax Incentives to Curb Legacy Admissions

Abstract

Part I of this Note will contextualize the practice of legacy admissions, describe its inherent unfairness and deleterious effects, and explain why—notwithstanding those concerns—some universities still employ the practice in their admissions processes. With that background, Part II of this Note will explain why fiscal incentives are the most appropriate mechanism to disincentivize legacy admissions practices. Part III will then evaluate the flawed federal fiscal proposals to curb legacy admissions, and Part IV will argue that state-level solutions should be preferred to federal ones to respect the values of federalism and promote the most narrowly-crafted, individualized, and state-specific solutions.

This abstract has been taken from the author's introduction.

Repository Citation

Patrick J. LaBella, Tax Collectors for Fair Admissions: Advancing State-Level Tax Incentives to Curb Legacy Admissions, 66 Wm. & Mary L. Rev. 1315 (2025), https://scholarship.law.wm.edu/wmlr/vol66/iss5/5