Adickes v. S. H. Kress & Co.
United States Supreme Court
398 U.S. 144 (1970)
Adickes (plaintiff), a white schoolteacher, was refused lunch-counter service at Kress (defendant) in Mississippi because she was with several Black students, and was then arrested for vagrancy. She sued, claiming the refusal reflected a community custom of segregated service and, separately, that it resulted from a conspiracy between Kress and local police. The trial court directed a verdict for Kress on the custom claim for lack of proof, and the conspiracy claim was dismissed on summary judgment before trial. The court of appeals affirmed both rulings.
Whether, on a motion for summary judgment, the moving party bears the burden of showing the absence of a genuine issue as to any material fact.