AP government SC cases!

1. Marbury v. Madison (1803) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: Article III (Judicial Branch & Original Jurisdiction). Precedent: Established Judicial Review — the Supreme Court's power to declare acts of Congress unconstitutional. Additional Info: Nullified Section 13 of the Judiciary Act of 1789; established SCOTUS as final arbiter of Constitution.

2. McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: Article I Necessary and Proper Clause & Article VI Supremacy Clause. Precedent: Established implied powers of Congress and reaffirmed federal supremacy over state laws (states cannot tax federal entities). Additional Info: Centered on the creation and state taxation of the Second Bank of the United States.

3. Schenck v. United States (1919) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Freedom of Speech). Precedent: Speech creating a "clear and present danger" is not protected by the First Amendment. Additional Info: Schenck distributed anti-draft leaflets during WWI; established that speech rights are tighter during wartime.

4. Gitlow v. New York (1925)

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Freedom of Speech) & Fourteenth Amendment (Due Process Clause). Precedent: Began the process of selective incorporation, applying First Amendment free speech protections to state governments. Additional Info: Even though Gitlow lost under the "dangerous tendency" test, it established that states must respect fundamental rights.

5. Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969)

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Freedom of Speech). Precedent: Established the "imminent lawless action" test; speech can only be restricted if directed to inciting or producing imminent lawless action and likely to cause it. Additional Info: Overturned Schenck's broader "clear and present danger" standard; involved a KKK leader's speech.

6. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Equal Protection Clause). Precedent: Upheld state-mandated racial segregation under the "separate but equal" doctrine. Additional Info: Sanctioned Jim Crow laws for nearly six decades until explicitly overturned by Brown v. Board (1954).

7. Brown v. Board of Education (1954) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Equal Protection Clause). Precedent: State laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are inherently unequal and unconstitutional. Additional Info: Overturned Plessy v. Ferguson (1896); ordered school desegregation "with all deliberate speed."

8. Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978)

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Equal Protection Clause) & Title VI of Civil Rights Act of 1964. Precedent: Outlawed rigid racial quotas in university admissions, but allowed race to be used as one of several factors in admissions decisions. Additional Info: Landmark early ruling on affirmative action in higher education.

9. Grutter v. Bollinger (2003)

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Equal Protection Clause). Precedent: Upheld the narrow use of race as a holistic factor in university admissions to achieve a diverse student body. Additional Info: Reaffirmed the Bakke core principle that diversity is a compelling state interest.

10. Students for Fair Admissions v. UNC / Harvard (2023)

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Equal Protection Clause) & Title VI of Civil Rights Act of 1964. Precedent: Ended race-conscious affirmative action in college admissions, ruling race cannot be used as a standalone factor. Additional Info: Overturned Grutter v. Bollinger and Bakke precedents regarding race in admissions.

11. Baker v. Carr (1961) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Equal Protection Clause). Precedent: Legislative redistricting is a justiciable issue in federal courts, establishing the principle of "one person, one vote." Additional Info: Opened the door to judicial challenges against malapportionment and legislative gerrymandering.

12. Wesberry v. Sanders (1964)

Constitutional Clause: Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution. Precedent: Required Congressional districts to be drawn so that population sizes are as equal as practicable ("one person, one vote" applied to US House districts). Additional Info: Reduced rural overrepresentation in Congress relative to urban centers.

13. Shaw v. Reno (1993) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Equal Protection Clause). Precedent: Majority-minority redistricting plans cannot be drawn based solely on race without a compelling state interest (strict scrutiny on racial gerrymandering). Additional Info: Invalidated North Carolina's bizarrely shaped 12th congressional district.

14. Shelby County v. Holder (2013)

Constitutional Clause: Tenth Amendment & Article V / Fourteenth/Fifteenth Amendments. Precedent: Struck down Section 4(b) coverage formula of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 as unconstitutional, effectively ending federal "preclearance" for voting law changes. Additional Info: Allowed states previously under federal oversight to change voting laws without prior Justice Dept approval.

15. Engel v. Vitale (1962) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Establishment Clause). Precedent: State-sponsored, official prayer in public schools violates the Establishment Clause, even if non-denominational and voluntary. Additional Info: Established a strict wall of separation between church and public education.

16. Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe (2000)

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Establishment Clause). Precedent: Student-led, student-initiated prayer at public high school football games using school equipment violates the Establishment Clause. Additional Info: Extended Engel v. Vitale's principle to extracurricular school events.

17. Kennedy v. Bremerton School District (2022)

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Free Exercise & Free Speech Clauses). Precedent: Protected a public high school football coach's right to engage in personal post-game prayer at midfield. Additional Info: Abandoned the longstanding "Lemon Test" previously used for Establishment Clause analysis.

18. Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: Sixth Amendment (Right to Counsel) & Fourteenth Amendment (Due Process Clause). Precedent: Guaranteed the right to legal counsel for indigent defendants in state felony criminal cases. Additional Info: Selective incorporation case that applied the Sixth Amendment right to attorney services to state courts.

19. Miranda v. Arizona (1966)

Constitutional Clause: Fifth Amendment (Self-Incrimination) & Sixth Amendment (Right to Counsel). Precedent: Police must inform suspects of their rights to remain silent and to an attorney prior to custodial interrogation ("Miranda Rights"). Additional Info: Established clear procedural safeguards to prevent coerced confessions.

20. Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Due Process Clause & Equal Protection Clause). Precedent: Same-sex couples have a fundamental right to marry, requiring all states to license same-sex marriages and recognize out-of-state licenses. Additional Info: Legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.

21. Tinker v. Des Moines (1969) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Freedom of Speech / Symbolic Speech). Precedent: Students retain First Amendment rights at school unless conduct "materially and substantially interferes" with school operations. Additional Info: Students wore black armbands to protest the Vietnam War; established key protection for symbolic speech in schools.

22. Texas v. Johnson (1989)

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Freedom of Speech / Symbolic Speech). Precedent: Flag burning is a protected form of political symbolic speech under the First Amendment. Additional Info: Struck down state laws prohibiting the desecration of the American flag.

23. Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier (1988)

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Freedom of Speech / Press). Precedent: School administrators can censor student speech/articles in school-sponsored publications if tied to legitimate pedagogical concerns. Additional Info: Distinguished school-sponsored activities from personal private speech (like in Tinker).

24. New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964)

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Freedom of Speech / Press). Precedent: Public officials suing for libel must prove "actual malice" (knowledge of falsity or reckless disregard for truth). Additional Info: Protected media organizations from being silenced by aggressive libel suits by government figures.

25. New York Times Co. v. United States (1971) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Freedom of the Press). Precedent: Established a heavy presumption against prior restraint, even in national security cases. Additional Info: Allowed publication of the classified "Pentagon Papers" regarding US involvement in Vietnam.

26. Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Free Exercise Clause). Precedent: Individual free exercise of religion outweighs state interests in compelling public school attendance past 8th grade. Additional Info: Amish parents refused to send children to high school due to religious beliefs; state law ruled invalid for them.

27. Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah (1993)

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Free Exercise Clause). Precedent: City ordinances targeting specific religious practices (Santeria animal sacrifice) under the guise of animal welfare are unconstitutional. Additional Info: Laws burdening religious practice must be neutral and generally applicable, or pass strict scrutiny.

28. Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

Constitutional Clause: First, Third, Fourth, Ninth, and Fourteenth Amendments (Penumbra Rights). Precedent: Established that the Constitution implicitly guarantees a right to marital privacy, striking down state bans on contraceptives. Additional Info: Created the legal baseline for privacy rights expanded later in Roe v. Wade.

29. Roe v. Wade (1973) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Due Process Clause & Right to Privacy). Precedent: Constitution protects a fundamental right to privacy, encompassing a woman's decision to have an abortion. Additional Info: Selectively incorporated privacy rights; later overturned by Dobbs v. Jackson (2022).

30. Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992)

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Due Process Clause). Precedent: Reaffirmed Roe's constitutional right to abortion, but replaced the trimester framework with the "undue burden" standard for state restrictions. Additional Info: Allowed pre-viability restrictions (waiting periods, parental consent) as long as they didn't create an undue burden.

31. Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt (2016)

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Due Process Clause). Precedent: State laws placing unnecessary admitting-privilege and facility requirements on abortion providers created an unconstitutional "undue burden." Additional Info: Struck down restrictive Texas abortion provider laws.

32. Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022)

Constitutional Clause: Fourteenth Amendment (Due Process Clause). Precedent: Overturned Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, ruling the Constitution does not confer a right to abortion and returning regulation to states. Additional Info: Eliminated the federal constitutional right to abortion.

33. Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States (1964)

Constitutional Clause: Article I Commerce Clause. Precedent: Congress can use the Commerce Clause to force private businesses to abide by Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, banning racial discrimination in public accommodations. Additional Info: Upheld federal civil rights legislation over interstate travel accommodations.

34. United States v. Lopez (1995) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: Article I Commerce Clause & Tenth Amendment (Federalism). Precedent: Congress exceeded its authority under the Commerce Clause by passing the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990. Additional Info: Marked a shift toward modern federalism and judicial limits on federal power under the Commerce Clause.

35. District of Columbia v. Heller (2008)

Constitutional Clause: Second Amendment (Right to Keep and Bear Arms). Precedent: The Second Amendment protects an individual's right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, for self-defense within the home. Additional Info: Struck down DC's handgun ban; applied federal jurisdiction prior to McDonald v. Chicago.

36. McDonald v. Chicago (2010) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: Second Amendment (Right to Bear Arms) & Fourteenth Amendment (Due Process / Selective Incorporation). Precedent: The Second Amendment individual right to keep and bear arms applies to state and local governments through selective incorporation. Additional Info: Extended the Heller decision to state and local handgun bans nationwide.

37. Buckley v. Valeo (1976)

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Freedom of Speech). Precedent: Upheld limits on campaign contributions, but struck down limits on candidate spending from their own personal funds and total campaign expenditures. Additional Info: Equated money spent on campaign speech with First Amendment speech protections.

38. Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) [REQUIRED]

Constitutional Clause: First Amendment (Freedom of Speech). Precedent: Independent campaign spending by corporations and unions is protected speech; restrictions on independent expenditures are unconstitutional. Additional Info: Paved the way for Super PACs and unlimited political spending.