Due process, policy and procedure, evidence, Fourteenth Amendment

Officials with the National Collegiate Athletic Association appeal a lower court's ruling in a suit involving a Duke University tennis player. The association ruled Chaim Arlosoroff, a leading member of the Duke tennis team, ineligible after his first season. Arlosoroff, and Israeli national, played for an Israeli tennis team while serving in the Israeli army. The NCAA viewed Arlosoroff's participation on the Israeli team as a violation of a new association rule. Arlosoroff challenged the NCAA's ruling, claiming it violated his due process rights and his right to equal protection.

A U.S. District Court for the Fourth Circuit ruled for Arlosoroff and granted a preliminary injunction against the NCAA's eligibility rule. The association now appeals.

The NCAA wins. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth District vacated the lower court's injunction. The court ruled the NCAA did not exist as a "state institution" and that member schools voluntarily participate in the association. Therefore, the court ruled, schools abiding by the association's rules were not required to meet the same standard of due process that a state institution or agency might be required to uphold.