Constitutional Law Overview

I. Judicial Review and Constitutional Interpretation

A. Judicial Review

• Marbury v. Madison (1803) – Established the power of judicial review

  • Courts interpret the Constitution and invalidate conflicting laws

  • Constitution = supreme law of the land (Art. VI Supremacy Clause)

B. Interpretive Methods

• Textualism: What the Constitution literally says

• Originalism: What the framers intended

• Living Constitution: Evolves with societal changes

• Structuralism: Based on the structure and relationships in the Constitution

• Doctrinal Approach: Applying precedent

II. Federalism: Division of Power Between Federal & State Governments

A. Enumerated Powers Doctrine

• Federal government is one of limited, enumerated powers (Art. I, §8)

B. Commerce Clause

• Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) – Broad reading of interstate commerce

• Wickard v. Filburn (1942) – Aggregate effects can justify regulation

• United States v. Lopez (1995) – Limited scope: cannot regulate non-economic activity

• Gonzales v. Raich (2005) – Homegrown marijuana affects market; can regulate

C. Necessary and Proper Clause

• McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) – Broad construction allowed if means are legitimate and related to an enumerated power

D. Tenth Amendment

• National League of Cities v. Usery (overruled)

• Printz v. United States – Feds can’t commandeer state officials

III. Separation of Powers

A. Legislative Powers

• Nondelegation Doctrine – Congress can't delegate legislative powers without intelligible principles (rarely enforced)

B. Executive Powers

• Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952) – Steel seizure case

  • Jackson’s Concurrence: 3 zones of executive power:

    1. With Congressional approval (strongest)

    2. Twilight zone (unclear)

    3. Against Congress’s will (weakest)

• U.S. v. Nixon (1974) – Presidential privilege not absolute

• Clinton v. City of New York (1998) – Line-item veto unconstitutional

C. Administrative Agencies

• Chevron v. NRDC (1984) – Chevron deference:

  1. Is the statute ambiguous?

  2. If yes, is the agency’s interpretation reasonable?

IV. Individual Rights & Liberties

A. Incorporation Doctrine

• Via 14th Amendment Due Process Clause, most of the Bill of Rights applies to states

• Selective incorporation (e.g., Gitlow v. New York)

V. Equal Protection (14th Amendment)

A. Levels of Scrutiny

B. Key Cases

• Brown v. Board of Education (1954) – Separate but equal is inherently unequal

• Loving v. Virginia (1967) – Bans on interracial marriage unconstitutional

• Craig v. Boren (1976) – Gender-based laws must pass intermediate scrutiny

• U.S. v. Windsor (2013) – Struck down DOMA; animus not a legitimate interest

• Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) – Right to marry is a fundamental right

VI. Substantive Due Process

A. Fundamental Rights

• Protected under 14th Amendment Due Process Clause (state action) and 5th Amendment (federal)

B. Recognized Fundamental Rights

VII. Procedural Due Process

A. Requirements

• State action + deprivation of life, liberty, or property interest

• Mathews v. Eldridge balancing test:

  1. Private interest

  2. Risk of erroneous deprivation

  3. Government interest

VIII. First Amendment

A. Freedom of Speech

1. Content-Based vs. Content-Neutral

• Strict Scrutiny if content-based

• Intermediate Scrutiny if content-neutral time/place/manner restrictions

2. Unprotected Speech

• Incitement – Brandenburg v. Ohio: directed to incite imminent lawless action

• Fighting Words – Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire

• Obscenity – Miller v. California: lacks value, appeals to prurient interest, patently offensive

• Defamation – NY Times v. Sullivan: actual malice required for public officials

• True Threats – Virginia v. Black

3. Symbolic Speech

• Texas v. Johnson – Flag burning protected

B. Freedom of the Press

• No prior restraints (Near v. Minnesota, NY Times v. U.S. – Pentagon Papers)

C. Freedom of Religion

1. Establishment Clause

• Lemon Test (Lemon v. Kurtzman):

  1. Secular purpose

  2. Primary effect neither advances nor inhibits religion

  3. No excessive entanglement

• Engel v. Vitale, Lee v. Weisman: school prayer unconstitutional

2. Free Exercise Clause

• Employment Division v. Smith: neutral laws of general applicability okay

• RFRA: heightened scrutiny post-Smith

• Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye v. Hialeah: targeted religious conduct fails

IX. State Action Doctrine

• Constitutional protections apply only against government, not private actors

• Exceptions:

  • Public function

  • Entanglement (state authorizes or facilitates unconstitutional conduct)

X. Exam Framework Tips

Use IRAC or CREAC and include:

• Constitutional provision involved

• Level of scrutiny

• Government interest

• Application of facts to test

• Conclusion

Key Case Table