Constitutional Law Flashcards
Ripeness
A federal court will not hear a case unless there exists a “case and controversy”. Meaning, among other things, that a P general is not entitled to review of his claim unless he has been harmed or there is an immediate threat of harm.
Congress power to regulate foreign commerce
The power to regulate foreign commerce lies exclusively with Congress. Therefore, a state that adopts legislation requiring private vendors to favor US products over foreign products, may be acting outside the scope of its powers.
The first amendment and obscenity
The first amendment generally protects the right of freedom of speech, and this freedom includes the right to show moves. The court has defined obscenity as a depiction of sexual count that, taken as a whole, by the average person, using contemporary community standards: (i) appeals to the prurient interest in sex; (ii) portrays sex in a patently offensive way; and (iii) using a national, reasonable person standard, does not have serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.
The Establishment Cause
Forbids the government from adopting a law or program that establishes religion.
Equal Protection Clause and the right to vote-
“one person, one vote”
The Equal Protection Clause prohibits state dilution of the right to vote, so that when a governmental body establishes voting districts for the election of representatives, the number of persons in each district may not vary significantly. This is known as the principle of “one person, one vote.” This principle applies to almost every election where a person is being elected to perform normal governmental functions (e.g., an election for trustees for a junior college district). However, the principle of one person, one vote generally is inapplicable where there is an at-large system of election (except where the system is adopted for discriminatory purposes).
Congress taxation power
Congress has the power to lay taxes under Article 1, Section 8, and a tax measure will usually be upheld if it b ears some reasonable relation to revenue production or if Congress has the power to regulate the taxed activity.
Free exercise callus of 1st amendment- how can religious beliefs be examined by the government
Although the validity of religious beliefs cannot be questioned, the role a belief system plays in the person’s life can be examined to determine whether the beliefs are indeed religious. The Free Exercise Clause of the 1st amendment, applicable to the states though the 14th amendment, prohibits punishing people for their religious beliefs. When a person claims that he is punished for his religious beliefs, the court may consider whether the person challenging a law sincerely holds those beliefs. Thus, the court may consider whether the person’s belief play a role in their lives similar to that a of orthodox religious beliefs.
The Property Clause of Article IV, Section 3
Congress has the power to “make all needful rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property belonging to the US”
Article II, Section 2
Provides that the President shall nominate and with the advice and consent of the Senate shall appoint, ambassadors and other officers of the US. The section also provides that Congress may vest the appointment of inferior officers in the President alone, in the courts of law, or in heads of department. Under separation of powers principles, however, Congress may not vest in itself any broader appointment powers than what is provided for by the Constitution. Where Congress has not vested the appointment power in courts of law or the heads of departments, it is not permitted to restrict the candidates the President may nominate for appointment. Thus, the Senate’s attempt here to exert some control over the President’s choice of lower level diplomatic representatives is an unconsitiouoinal violation of the separation of powers.
When speech is restricted
Certain public property (luck streets or parks) is so historically associated with the exercise of 1st amendment that to avoid being subject to strict scrutiny, a restriction os speech thereon must be content neutral Other places controlled by the government, are not so historically linked to speech activities, and such locations free speech might interfere with the intended use of such locations. Thus, the government can regulate access to these limited public forms and nonpublic forum based on the subject matter of speech, as long as the regulation is reasonably related to the purpose served by the property and is not designed merely to suppress a particular point of view.
“Clear and present danger test”
A state cannot forbid advocating the use of force or violation of law unless such advocacy i) is directed to producing or inciting imminent lawless action, ii) is likely to produce such action.
Due Process Clause
A person has a right to nice and a hearing if the government deprives the person of life, liberty and property.
Property interest in continued employment of government employee
The Supreme Court has held that a government employee will have a property interest in continued employment only if the employee has a legitimate claim to (as opposed to a mere expectancy of) continued employment. To have such a claim, there must be K, clear practice, mutual understanding,, etc., that the employee can be terminated only for cause.
Eleventh Amendment
Prohibits a federal court suit against a state by a citizen of that state or by a citizen of another state.
State sovereign immunity
Refers to the rule that a governmental entity may not be sued unless it consents to be sued (which consent Is generally afforded by statute).
First amendment violation
To justify content-based regulation to achieve a compelling state interest that cannot be satisfied by les restrictive means.
the right to associate for expressive purposes is not absolute. At the very least, the right may be infringed to serve a compelling government interest, unrelated to the suppression of ideas, that cannot be achieved through means significantly less restrictive of associational freedoms.
