STUDY GUIDE FOR FINAL

Constrained Court

Courts are limited in creating social change due to political, institutional, and social constraints.

Dynamic Court

Courts can create significant social change, even against resistance from other government branches.

Life Tenure, Good Behavior

Federal judges serve for life unless committing serious offenses, ensuring independence.

Judicial Independence

Courts function without undue influence from legislative or executive branches.

Due Process

Legal guarantees ensure the government respects all owed legal rights.

Judicial Review

Courts decide if laws/actions are unconstitutional.

Rational Basis

Presumed valid if reasonably related to a legitimate government interest.

Intermediate Scrutiny

Furthering an important interest in a substantially related way.

Strict Scrutiny

Requires compelling interest and narrowly tailored means.

Counter-majoritarian

Courts protect minority rights, even against the majority's will.

Constitutional Right to Privacy

Implied right in the Constitution to protect personal decisions.

Democratic Constitutionalism

Constitutional meaning evolves via public dialogue and activism.

Secular Humanism

A worldview emphasizing reason, ethics, and justice without religious influence.

Open Secret

Publicly known but unacknowledged facts.

Abortion Reform

Efforts to amend abortion-related laws and policies.

Worldview

Comprehensive lens for interpreting the world.

Originalism

Interpreting the Constitution based on its original meaning when ratified.

Original Public Meaning

The Constitution’s words as understood by the public at the time.

Original Intent

The framers’ intentions.

Militia

Citizens organized for defense, central to Second Amendment debates.

Individual Rights Reading

Interprets the Second Amendment as protecting personal gun ownership.

Means-ends Reasoning

Balancing law’s purpose against its methods.

Heritage v. History

Tension between celebrating tradition and acknowledging historical realities.

Abhorrence Problem

Reconciling originalism with historical injustices.

Act-Status Distinction

Differentiates punishing acts versus discriminating against status.

Sodomy Laws

Laws criminalizing specific sexual acts, historically targeting LGBTQ+ people.

Harm Principle

Laws should only restrict actions causing harm to others.

Equal Protection

Constitutional guarantee of equal law application.

Rational Basis with a Bite

Stricter rational basis review in some LGBTQ+ cases.

Morality Laws

Laws enforcing moral beliefs, often challenged in LGBTQ+ contexts.

But-for Reasoning

Determines discrimination by asking if the outcome differs 'but for' someone’s status.