Burden of proof

Civil rights claims are generally handled in civil court which means that the burden of proof falls on the person bringing the complaint normally called the plaintiff. If I feel you have discriminated against me because of my age when applying for a job, I have to provide a preponderance of evidence showing that to be the case. Once I do that I have presented what is called a “prima facie case” and now the burden of proof shifts to the defendant who must now refute my case. If he can do that the burden shifts back to me. Over the years this process has shifted in cases regarding discrimination because of race. A case in 1970 started the shift when a university selected a white candidate over a black because the white had a high school diploma and performed better on an IQ test. The plaintiff’s lawyer complained that this discriminated against black applicants and the court agreed and demanded that the burden of proof shift to the university to show that this was not discriminatory against blacks. This type of shifting has occurred regularly since then. This is considered by many as the precursor to race norming.