Labine v. Vincent

Ezra Vincent died intestate, survived by only collateral relations and an illegitimate daughter, whose guardian (appellant) sued to have her declared Vincent's sole heir. The trial court ruled that under Louisiana law the collateral relations took the decedent's property to the exclusion of the daughter, who had been acknowledged by her father but not legitimated. The Louisiana Court of Appeal affirmed. The State Supreme Court denied certiorari. Appellant, relying on Levy v. Louisiana, 391 U.S. 68, contends that Louisiana's intestate succession laws that bar an illegitimate child from sharing equally with legitimate children in the father's estate constitute an invidious discrimination violative of the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Constitution.

Held: The Louisiana statutory intestate succession scheme is within the State's power to establish rules for the protection and strengthening of family life and for the disposition of property, and in view of various statutory alternatives, none of which was chosen by Vincent, did not (unlike the situation in Levy) constitute an insurmountable barrier to illegitimate children. Pp. 535-540.

255 La. 480, 230 So. 2d 395, affirmed. See: 229 So. 2d 449.

BLACK, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which BURGER, C.J., and HARLAN, STEWART, and BLACKMUN, JJ., joined. HARLAN, J., filed a concurring opinion, post, p. 540. BRENNAN, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which DOUGLAS, WHITE, and MARSHALL, JJ., joined, post, p. 541.

James J. Cox argued the cause and filed a brief for appellant.

James A. Leithead argued the cause for appellee. With him on the brief was Norman F. Anderson.

Briefs of amici curiae urging reversal were filed by Harry D. Krause, Norman Dorsen, and Melvin L. Wulf for the American Civil Liberties Union, and by Jonathan Weiss and David Gilman for the Center on Social Welfare Policy and Law.

Briefs of amici curiae urging affirmance were filed by Jack P.F. Gremillion, Attorney General, for the State of Louisiana, and by A. Leon Hebert and E. Drew McKinnis for the Buras Heirs et al.