Page 33 - ACTL Journal Win24

After more than thirty years litigating corporate, commercial and trust disputes, and after being inducted as a Fel- low of the College in 2005, Collins J. Seitz, Jr., was appointed Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Delaware in 2015. Four years later, he was appointed Chief Justice, the position he holds today. By entering public service, Chief Justice Seitz followed his father, who spent more than fifty years on the Delaware Court of Chancery and the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit—including several years as Chief Judge of the Third Circuit. At the Annual Meeting in San Diego, Chief Justice Seitz shared his unique perspective on his father’s courageous, but largely unknown, historic role in the desegregation of American schools.
Unlike most states, Delaware still maintains the historic divide between courts of law and equity. The Delaware Court of Chancery is the state’s court of equity, which gives it exclusive jurisdiction over actions seeking equitable relief, including injunctions. The Court is widely known for busted deal cases and multi-billion-dollar business disputes—such as the recent, highly publicized Twitter v. Musk dispute.
Far less is known about the central role that the Court of Chancery, and specifically Chancellor Collins J. Seitz, played in the desegregation of American schools, including the Supreme Court’s landmark 1954 decision in Brown v. Board of Education. As Chancellor Seitz’s story makes clear, a court of equity was the perfect instrument to ad- dress the issue of race relations in Delaware and, more broadly, the nation in the 1950’s.
Having grown up in an all-white community and attended all-white schools, what prompted Chancellor Seitz to become a crusader for equal rights is not clear. He did, however, experience challenges growing up during the Great Depression. His father passed away following an extended illness, leaving his mother and five siblings destitute. His family often went hungry.
It was only because of the kindness of others that Chancellor Seitz was able to pursue his education. He attended the University of Delaware after his brother convinced the Registrar to accept a post-dated check. And he attended the University of Virginia Law School with a scholarship from a prominent Delaware family.
After graduating from law school, Chancellor Seitz returned to Delaware and entered private practice. His promise as a corporate lawyer, innate intelligence and work ethic brought him to the attention of the then-chancellor, who selected Chancellor Seitz to be his vice chancellor.
To understand the enormous courage shown by Chancellor Seitz, it is imperative to understand the state of race relations in Delaware in the 1950’s. Segregation was not simply a way of life, it was legally mandated – the Delaware Constitution required segregation in public schools. Interracial marriage was prohibited. And there were separate facilities for black and white people throughout the state—including courthouses. It is little wonder that Delaware was described as a northern state with a southern exposure.
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