Implied Constitutional Rights

Question 1

What are the P or I clause traditional CL privileges?

Answer 1

• Access to seaports
• Right to petition governments
• Right to move between states
• NO right to pursue one’s trade
  (Slaughterhouse)

Question 2

What are implicit rights allowed because they are “inherent to our system”?

Answer 2

-Procreation (Skinner)
- Travel between states (Shapiro)
- NOT education and NOT welfare

Question 3

Skinner v. Oklahoma

Answer 3

Procreation is a fundamental right because it is vital to humanity’s survival

If a state is going to limit a fundamental right for a class of persons, it needs a “very good reason”

Question 4

Shapiro v. Thompson

Answer 4

Right to travel between states is implicit because it is inherent to the functioning of our federal system

The Court does not want to create a baseline for welfare where people are getting money from the government

Question 5

Dandridge v. Williams

Answer 5

Wealth is not going to be a suspect class

Limitation: Where the State is forcing you to deal with it, it will have to provide some support to enable that interaction

Question 6

San Antonio v. Rodriguez

Answer 6

In cases where the court has extended rights based on poverty, it has been where there is a complete deprivation (a crappy education is not a complete deprivation)

Importance of a service performed (e.g., education) does not determine whether it will be regarded as fundamental for our purposes

Question 7

Plyler v. Doe

Answer 7

Although education should get Rational Basis treatment, the Court declines to do so here and chooses a “substantial goal” as the required ends

This is because the discriminated class is the children of undocumented immigrants, and the risk of creating a secondary class, and the parent/child agency problem