Constitutional Law

This lesson explores the concepts of notice and knowledge. These are important concepts in many areas of law, e.g., contracts, property, constitutional law, criminal procedure and civil procedure.

This lesson covers First Amendment doctrine and theory pertaining to commercial speech. The lesson considers the development of commercial speech from unprotected to protected speech; the applicable constitutional tests for evaluating commercial speech, the doctrine regarding mandated disclosures in commercial contexts, and recent cases decided by the Roberts Court considering commercial speech.

This lesson introduces the student to the doctrine and processes involved in interpreting state and federal statutes. Statutes are a critical part of every substantive area of the law, so this is important background for every student, legal professional, lawyer and judge.

This lesson addresses freedom of speech issues for public school employees at the elementary, secondary, and post-secondary levels.

This lesson addresses the First Amendment protections for student speech in public elementary and secondary schools. You willl learn about the legal standards from United States Supreme Court cases that apply to different types of student speech, and how lower courts have interpreted these standards. You will then apply these standards to factual scenarios in multiple choice and essay type questions. This lesson includes the standards that apply to off-campus and online speech.

This lesson considers equal protection and affirmative action. It treats the beginnings of affirmative action, the level of scrutiny that applies to affirmative action, the special context of affirmative action and education, and affirmative action and the political process, including redistricting.

The lesson concerns the applicability of the Equal Protection Clause to the federal government, a constitutional doctrine often known as "reverse incorporation." It can be used as class preparation, review, or as a supplement.

This Lesson considers race under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment as well as under other constitutional provisions, with the exception of "affirmative action" which is the subject of a separate lesson. It can be used as an introduction or as review.

The Lesson concerns the constitutional doctrine and theories of incorporation regarding whether the federal government, the state government, or both are bound by the specific individual constitutional rights in the Bill of Rights.

This lesson covers the basic constitutional issues and arguments in marriage with an emphasis on same-sex marriage litigation, including Hollingsworth v. Perry, United States v. Windsor, and Obergefell v. Hodges. It is best used as a supplement or review.

This lesson is designed to introduce you to the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. It is one of a number of lessons on the religion clauses (which include the Establishment Clause and the Free Exercise Clause), and the first of several lessons on Establishment Clause issues. It is intended for students who have studied these issues and wish to refine their knowledge.

This lesson is designed to provide you with an overview of the religion clauses (which include both the Establishment Clause and the Free Exercise Clause) of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. The lesson is intended for students who have studied these issues in class, and who wish to refine their knowledge of these clauses.

This lesson covers Congress's authority to enact legislation pursuant to the Commerce Clause under the Supreme Court's rulings since 1995.

This lesson covers the historical evolution of Congress's authority to enact legislation pursuant to the Commerce Clause. Congress's contemporary Commerce Clause authority is covered in a separate lesson.

This lesson concerns Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. (1 Cranch) 137 (1803), a difficult and important case in Constitutional Law. It is contained in every Constitutional Law casebook and usually appears as one of the first cases. This lesson is designed to assist students to understand Marbury v. Madison and its relevance.

This lesson discusses the role of federal preemption in the implementation of environmental law. Specifically, when do federal environmental and natural resources statutes preempt, or displace, state laws on similar subjects? When are states free to enact their own environmental protections? What is the relationship between federal environmental law and state torts?

This lesson covers the basic Constitutional doctrine of state action. This lesson can be used to prepare for class or as a review of Constitutional doctrine.

Article III of the United States Constitution requires a plaintiff to establish "standing" in order to sue in federal court. In addition to showing an injury-in-fact, plaintiff must also show "causation" and "redressability." In other words, plaintiff must show that defendant is the "cause" of the injury, and that the injury will be redressed by a favorable judicial decision.

This lesson focuses on the presidential version of executive privilege. The lesson examines the justifications for the privilege, the requirements for its invocation, and judicial handling of that privilege.

This lesson provides a review of the constitutional requirements for standing in federal courts that citizen plaintiffs must fulfill in order to bring environmental citizen suits in the federal courts.

This lesson examines several status issues that arise in standing cases. In a prior lesson, we examined two contexts in which individuals might seek standing: taxpayer standing and citizen standing. In this lesson, we examine two other situations that may arise: the right of associations to sue on behalf of their members, and the rights of individuals to assert the interests of third parties. This lesson is intended for students who have studied these issues in class and who are seeking to further refine their knowledge and grasp of the area.

This lesson introduces students to one of the constitutional issues that can arise as a result of environmental and natural resources regulation: regulatory takings under the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It begins by giving students an overview of regulatory taking claims, their distinction from physical takings of private property, and some of the rules that apply in evaluating whether a regulatory taking has occurred.

The subject of "unlawful delegation" of powers is an important issue in both constitutional and administrative law. Not infrequently, Congress attempts to delegate its legislative authority to an administrative agency or to the courts. Sometimes, Congress attempts to delegate judicial power to administrative agencies. In this lesson, we explore the legality of such delegations. This lesson is intended for students who have studied these issues in class, and wish to refine their knowledge.

A critical issue that arises in many administrative cases is the question of constitutional standing to litigate. At its most basic, standing is the requirement that a litigant must have a sufficient interest in the outcome of the litigation in order to be entitled to sue. This lesson provides an introduction to constitutional standing issues and provides the basis for more in depth review in subsequent lessons. The lesson is intended for students who have studied these issues in class and who wish to further refine their knowledge.