Con Law Flashcards
Tenth Amt rule statement
Congress may exercise only those powers specifically enumerated by the Constitution. Under the Tenth Amendment, all powers not assigned by the Constitution to the federal government are reserved to the states. In theory, this gives the states expansive, exclusive power. In practice, however, the federal government has very broad power to regulate the states. As long as Congress is exercising one of its enumerated powers, Congress may regulate the states, within certain limits.
Anti-commandeering 10A rule statement
Congress cannot “commandeer” state legislatures by commanding them to enact specific legislation or enforce a federal regulatory program. Congress is also prohibited from conscripting a state executive officer directly.
Article III standing
Article III, Section 2 restricts federal judicial power to “cases” and “controversies.” A federal court cannot decide a case unless the plaintiff has standing to bring it. To have standing, a plaintiff bears the burden of establishing three elements: (i) injury in fact; (ii) the injury was fairly traceable to the challenged action (causation); and (iii) the relief requested must prevent or redress the injury. Standing requires a concrete and particularized injury, even in the context of a statutory violation. The injury need not be physical or economic. An injury such as the invasion of privacy may be a sufficiently concrete injury in itself even when extensive damages cannot be proved.
State action by private party
The Constitution generally protects against wrongful conduct by the government, not private parties. A private person’s conduct must constitute state action in order for these protections to apply. State action is found when a private person carries on activities that are traditionally performed exclusively by the state, such as running primary elections or governing a “company town.”
Traditional public forum rules for speech
A traditional public forum is one that is historically associated with expression, such as sidewalks, streets, and parks. In a traditional public forum, the government may only regulate speech if the restrictions: (i) are content-neutral as to both subject matter and viewpoint, (ii) are narrowly tailored to serve a significant governmental interest, and (iii) leave open ample alternative channels for communication. Additional restrictions, such as an absolute prohibition of a particular type of expression, will be upheld only if narrowly drawn to accomplish a compelling governmental interest.
General 1A protections
The First Amendment protects freedom of speech. Protected speech can include written, oral, and visual communication, as well as activities such as picketing and leafleting. The government’s ability to regulate speech depends on the forum in which the speech takes place.
