The doctrine of precedent is one of the most important traditions in the American legal system. Which of the following statements accurately summarizes how the Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) and Brown v. Board of Education (1954) cases dramatically illustrated how precedent can change and how changing precedent can have a significant impact on society?
A. The Brown case was a consolidation of five different cases from four different states that all addressed the same issue: racial segregation in public schools. In Brown, the plaintiffs argued that “separate but equal” practices were inherently unfair.
B. In Plessy v. Ferguson, the U.S. Supreme Court legalized racial segregation practices. These practices also were known as “separate but equal” practices. Brown v. Board of Education upheld the precedent until the President issued an executive order to make racial segregation unconstitutional.
C. The Brown decision was remarkable because the Court departed from the precedent set in Plessy. In fact, the Court specifically rejected the reasoning that it had used to support its decision in Plessy. Brown established new legal precedent that separate but equal laws are unconstitutional.
D. In Brown v. Board of Education the plaintiff argued that these separate but equal practices violated the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The Fourteenth Amendment requires that all citizens be provided equal protection under law.

Courts do like to rely on precedent and the doctrine of stare decisis. If they have quibbles, they usually make small changes. It is rare, then, for a Court to systematically reject the holding and precedent of a case because so many lower courts will have relied on that case's holding.

Answer Link