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20 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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A state required its political parties to allow all eligible voters (not just those registered as party members) to vote in their party primaries. Is this constitutional? |
No. It violates the fundamental right due process right to vote. No state may require parties to hold open primaries.No. It violates the same right. No state may prohibit a party from allowing independents to vote in party primaries. |
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President used discretionary funds appropriated to the executive by Congress to establish an office to improve local communities through faith-based organizations. The office only supported religious organizations. A taxpayer brought an action challenging this use of tax dollars. What result?
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The taxpayer lacks standing. Although there is an exception to this rule, it is very narrow and does not include standing to challenge the president's use of discretionary funds appropriated to the executive by Congress.
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The president entered into a treaty on human rights. The Senate ratified the treaty, which was not self-executing, and took no further action on the treaty. The president issued an order to a state to overturn a criminal's conviction pursuant to the terms of the treaty. The state refused. Is the state within its rights to refuse?
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Yes. The treaty was not self-executing and the Senate took no further action (did not implement the treaty through legislation). The President can't implement a treaty that is not self-executing on his own.
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A state law prohibits the sale of violent video games to minors based on a study that shows a correlation between violent video games and violence. |
a. is wrong because content based restrictions are not analyzed by a balancing testb. correct! analyze this based on strict scrutiny - the mere correlation between violent videos and violence does not rise to the level of a compelling interestc. wrong because they are protectedd. wrong because, although states may protect children, they may not shield children from speech absent one of the recognized limitations on speech (like obscenity) |
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What is the 11th Amendment? |
A limitation on the power of the federal judiciary.• Jurisdictional bar prohibiting citizens from suing their own state (not local government) in federal court that immunizes state from suits for money damages • Bars suits against state officials for violating state law • Exceptions to application of 11th Amend. o Consent o Injunctive or declaratory relief o Damages paid by state officer o Congressional enforcement of 14th Amend. rights |
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summarize Supreme Court original and appellate jurisdiction
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1. Original jurisdiction over • All cases affecting ambassadors • Other public ministers/consuls • When state is a party 2. Appellate jurisdiction over other cases through certiorari and direct appeal • Final state-court judgment resting upon adequate/independent state grounds not reviewable by Supreme Court |
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what to know about advisory opinions
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Federal courts may not render advisory opinions on the basis of an abstract or a hypothetical dispute. An actual case or controversy must exist. EXAM NOTE: Fact patterns involving a request for declaratory judgment are likely testing advisory opinion prohibition. |
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what happens to pending legislation when relevant new law is passed?
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EXAM NOTE: Congress may amend or repeal existing law and direct that the change be applied in all related pending actions, i.e., those in which a final judgment has not been entered. If a bar exam question involves application of new legislation, pay attention to the status of any case to which it is to be applied. (ex-post facto not ok, but this is not ex-post facto) |
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EXAM NOTE: Because there is almost _____________ on the ability of Congress to delegate to the executive and judiciary branches, an answer choice on the MBE indicating that Congress has “exceeded its power to delegate” is almost always incorrect.
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no limitation
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EXAM NOTE: The right to travel and the right to vote are the most frequently tested fundamental rights in the area of equal protection. (Often, both the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause will apply. Equal protection predominates if the question emphasizes denial of a right to a ______________ group, and it does not apply if the denial of the right is universal.)
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particular
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in order to infringe on an individual's right of free association to belong to a subversive political group, the govt must prove that the individual:
1. 2. 3. |
is an active member of a subversive organization has knowledge of the organization's illegal activities has specific intent to further those illegal objectives |
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state laws may limit contributions to candidates, but not contributions to ________________________ |
ballot measures |
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The First Amendment shields the media from liability for publication of ______________________________, e.g., the identity ______________________, so long as the news story involves a matter of ________________________. |
a lawfully obtained private fact of a rape victim public concern |
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A state enacted a law prohibiting anyone convicted of a felony from voting in state elections. A group of released felons filed suit in federal court, alleging that the statute violated their constitutional rights.
Is the court likely to uphold this statute as constitutional? |
Yes, as expressly permitted by Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment.
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Congress, without holding hearings or providing public notice, passed a bill immediately signed into law by the President. The bill terminated supplemental security income (SSI) payments to all resident aliens. The reason for the legislation was to address a budgetary shortfall. A resident alien who depended upon the payments to acquire food and shelter filed suit to challenge the constitutionality of the law. |
: Answer choice A is correct. Because Congress has plenary power over aliens under Article I, a federal alienage classification is likely valid unless it is arbitrary and unreasonable. Since the reason for the law (i.e., to reduce the deficit) is rational, it is constitutional. Answer choice B is incorrect because a person’s interest in receiving a government benefit is a property interest for which due process must be provided in the denial or termination of that benefit. However, Congress still had the authority to enact this law based on its plenary power over aliens. Answer choice C is incorrect because due process protection does not extend to the process by which a law is enacted. A person does not have a right to notice as to proposed legislation, nor does a person who would be affected by the legislation have a right to be heard. Answer choice D is incorrect because although alienage is a suspect class with regard to action taken by a state government, the statute was fed. |
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A city adopted an ordinance that prohibited any apartment building from housing more than one convicted felon on the premises. A convicted felon owned an apartment building in the city. He lived in one of the apartments in the building with his brother, who was also a convicted felon. The building owner received a citation from the city for violating the ordinance, and was ordered to pay a fine and bring the building into compliance. The building owner sued the city, arguing that the ordinance violated his constitutional rights. |
D.The guarantee of substantive due process is based upon the idea that laws should be reasonable and not arbitrary, and ensures that a governmental action that infringes upon a fundamental right is subject to strict scrutiny. Related persons have a fundamental right to live together in a single household. In this case, the ordinance prevented the man from living with his brother. Thus, the man’s best argument is that the ordinance, by prohibiting him from living with a family member, violates substantive due process. Answer choice B is incorrect because the law does not employ a suspect classification, and thus any equal protection claim would be subject to rational basis review. The man would have a difficult time showing that the ordinance did not satisfy this standard. |
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According to a state statute, a candidate for state office may have his name placed on the official election ballot only if he files with the appropriate state official a petition containing a specified number of voter signatures. One candidate failed to get his name placed on the state ballot as an independent candidate for governor, because he failed to file a petition with the number of voter signatures required by state statute. In a suit against the appropriate state officials in federal district court, the candidate sought an injunction against the petition signature requirement on the ground that it was unconstitutional. |
BIn a question involving a fundamental right such as voting rights, any state action will be held to strict scrutiny, and the government is held to prove that it has a compelling state interest, that the action is narrowly tailored, and that there are no less restrictive means to achieve the interest. However, unlike voting rights, access to the ballot is not a fundamental right, and burdens on access to the ballot are not subject to strict scrutiny. The state has a legitimate interest in regulating the election process, though that interest must be weighed against the use of unfair ballot access rules used to favor incumbents. Here, the strongest argument is that less burdensome means are available. Answer choice A is incorrect because burdensome requirements are allowable, as long as they do not effectively prohibit access to the ballot. Answer choice C is incorrect because it does not suggest that the state could have regulated the election process in a less burdensome manner. |
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A state hospital allocates a portion of its budget to a program providing health care services to married couples suffering from various illnesses. The purpose of the specific program is to strengthen family units both physically and financially. A same-sex couple applied for benefits from the program, but was denied health care services from the agency because the couple is not married, even though they meet all other eligibility requirements of the program. The couple files suit in federal court alleging that the hospital discriminated against them on the basis of their sexual orientation by creating a program for which they could never be eligible, as the state does not allow same-sex marriage. What is the appropriate burden to apply to this case? A. The state must establish that the law is the least restrictive means to achieve a compelling interest. B. The couple must establish that the law is arbitrary or irrational. |
BDiscrimination on the basis of sexual orientation does not provoke heightened scrutiny. |
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U.S. armed forces seized an alien engaged in combat against them in a foreign country. The alien was taken to a territory outside the United States but over which the United States had sovereign control. Shortly thereafter, Congress passed a law denying federal courts jurisdiction over habeas corpus petitions filed by individuals who were designated as enemy combatants, but did not generally suspend the privilege of filing habeas corpus petitions. Subsequently, the alien, who was designated an enemy combatant by the President, filed a habeas corpus petition in federal court |
Answer choice D is correct. Under the Suspension Clause of Article I, Section 9, Clause 2, a detainee retains the privilege to file a habeas corpus petition unless this privilege is suspended. This clause applies to individuals detained in a territory over which the United States has sovereign control, even though such territory is outside the United States. Answer choice A is incorrect because, while Congress may limit the jurisdiction of the federal judiciary, Congress may not exercise this power in a manner that violates the Constitution. Accordingly, Congress may not limit the constitutional right to habeas corpus by removing jurisdiction from federal courts. Answer choice B is incorrect because, although Congress generally has plenary power over aliens, this power is subject to the privilege to file a habeas corpus petition. Answer choice C is incorrect because Congress has the power to limit the jurisdiction of the federal judiciary |
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Does a question regarding a federal employee losing their job without a hearing implicate the takings clause or due process? |
due process (not sure why I chose takings); a right to notice and an opportunity to be heard - this is about deprivation of property, not takings!!! |
