Constitutional Law

88 flashcards by MentisLibrary

The structure of American government and the rights it protects, from judicial review to strict scrutiny. Where a single decision made the rule, the card names that case, the year it was decided, and what later courts did with it.

What is judicial review?
The power of federal courts to declare an act of Congress or the executive unconstitutional and refuse to give it effect
Where does Congress get power to act beyond its enumerated powers?
The Necessary and Proper Clause, Article I, Section 8, Clause 18, which lets Congress choose any appropriate means plainly adapted to a legitimate enumerated end
What does the Supremacy Clause do?
Makes the Constitution, federal statutes, and treaties the supreme law of the land, so conflicting state law is preempted
How broadly did the Court first read the Commerce Clause?
Commerce means all commercial intercourse that concerns more states than one, and the power reaches into the interior of a state
What are the three categories of activity Congress may regulate under the Commerce Clause?
(1) The channels of interstate commerce, (2) the instrumentalities of and persons or things in interstate commerce, and (3) activities that substantially affect interstate commerce
What is the aggregation principle in Commerce Clause analysis?
Even trivial local activity may be regulated if the class of such activity, taken in the aggregate, substantially affects interstate commerce
Why did the Gun-Free School Zones Act exceed the commerce power?
Possessing a gun near a school is noneconomic activity with no jurisdictional element and no substantial effect on interstate commerce
Why was the civil remedy in the Violence Against Women Act unconstitutional?
Gender-motivated violence is noneconomic criminal conduct, and Congress may not regulate it under the Commerce Clause merely by aggregating its economic effects
Could Congress reach purely intrastate cultivation of medical marijuana?
Yes, because it is economic activity within a comprehensive federal regulatory scheme whose national market Congress could rationally fear would be undercut
On what ground did the Court uphold the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate?
As an exercise of the taxing power, not the commerce power, because the Commerce Clause does not authorize Congress to compel individuals to enter a market
What is the dormant Commerce Clause?
The negative implication of the Commerce Clause: states may not discriminate against or unduly burden interstate commerce even when Congress has not acted
What test applies to a state law that facially discriminates against out-of-state commerce?
Virtual per se invalidity: the state must show a legitimate local purpose that cannot be served by reasonable nondiscriminatory alternatives
What test applies to an evenhanded state law that only incidentally burdens interstate commerce?
It is upheld unless the burden on interstate commerce is clearly excessive in relation to the putative local benefits
What is the market participant exception?
When a state buys or sells in the market rather than regulating it, the dormant Commerce Clause does not restrain its preference for its own citizens
What are the limits on Congress attaching conditions to federal funds?
The condition must be for the general welfare, unambiguous, related to the federal interest in the program, not induce unconstitutional action, and not be so coercive as to be compulsion
What is the anticommandeering principle?
Congress may not compel states to enact or administer a federal regulatory program, nor conscript state officers to execute federal law
What is Justice Jackson's three-tier framework for presidential power?
Power is at its maximum when the President acts with congressional authorization, in a zone of twilight when Congress is silent, and at its lowest ebb when acting against the expressed will of Congress
Why is the legislative veto unconstitutional?
Any congressional action with the force of law must satisfy bicameralism and presentment
May Congress reserve for itself the power to remove an officer exercising executive functions?
No, that aggrandizes Congress and violates separation of powers; Congress may remove an officer only by impeachment
What is the nondelegation doctrine's operative test?
Congress may delegate rulemaking authority so long as it lays down an intelligible principle to guide the delegate
Who may appoint inferior officers of the United States?
The President, courts of law, or heads of departments, if Congress so provides; principal officers require presidential nomination and Senate confirmation
Is executive privilege absolute?
No. There is a qualified privilege for presidential communications, which yields to a demonstrated specific need for evidence in a criminal trial
What civil immunity does a former President have?
Absolute immunity from civil damages liability for acts within the outer perimeter of official responsibility
What are the three constitutional requirements of standing?
Injury in fact that is concrete, particularized, and actual or imminent; causation traceable to the defendant; and redressability by a favorable decision
What are the classic factors for a nonjusticiable political question?
A textually demonstrable constitutional commitment to another branch, or a lack of judicially discoverable and manageable standards, among the six Baker factors
Are partisan gerrymandering claims justiciable in federal court?
No. They present a political question beyond the reach of the federal courts, though state courts and legislatures may act
What is the mootness exception for repeated short-lived disputes?
A case is not moot if the injury is capable of repetition yet evading review, or if the defendant voluntarily ceases conduct it is free to resume
How can a plaintiff sue a state official despite the Eleventh Amendment?
By seeking prospective injunctive relief against the officer personally for ongoing violations of federal law, the Ex parte Young fiction
What are the three tiers of equal protection scrutiny?
Strict scrutiny (narrowly tailored to a compelling interest), intermediate scrutiny (substantially related to an important interest), and rational basis (rationally related to a legitimate interest)
Which classifications trigger strict scrutiny?
Race, national origin, and (for state laws) alienage, plus burdens on fundamental rights