Constitutional Law & Civil Rights Flashcards

In Shelby County v. Holder (2013), the Supreme Court held unconstitutional which part of the Voting Rights Act?

Answer: Section 4(b)'s coverage formula

Shelby County struck down the Section 4(b) coverage formula as based on outdated data, leaving Section 5 without operative effect.

A defendant whose own speech is unprotected challenges a statute as overbroad. To succeed, the defendant must show the statute:

Answer: Prohibits a substantial amount of protected speech relative to its legitimate sweep

Overbreadth permits facial invalidation only when the law's unconstitutional applications are substantial relative to its plainly legitimate sweep.

California limited welfare benefits for new residents during their first year to the amount paid in their prior state. Under Saenz v. Roe, the law:

Answer: Violates the right to travel protected by the Fourteenth Amendment Privileges or Immunities Clause

Saenz held that durational residency limits on benefits violate new citizens' right to be treated equally, grounded in the Privileges or Immunities Clause.

Alaska charges nonresidents a commercial fishing license fee far higher than residents pay. A challenge under the Article IV Privileges and Immunities Clause could be brought by:

Answer: An individual nonresident citizen

The Article IV Privileges and Immunities Clause protects individual citizens, not corporations or aliens, against discrimination in fundamental rights like earning a livelihood.

A pregnant plaintiff's challenge to an abortion restriction would become moot before appellate review. Which doctrine allows the court to decide the case?

Answer: Capable of repetition, yet evading review

Short-duration controversies that are likely to recur for the same party fall within the 'capable of repetition, yet evading review' exception to mootness.

A public high school suspends students for wearing black armbands to protest a war. Under Tinker v. Des Moines, the suspension is constitutional only if:

Answer: The speech would materially and substantially disrupt school activities

Tinker permits schools to restrict student speech only upon a reasonable forecast of substantial disruption or invasion of others' rights.

Under New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass'n v. Bruen (2022), a firearm regulation burdening conduct covered by the Second Amendment's text is constitutional only if:

Answer: The government shows it is consistent with the Nation's historical tradition of firearm regulation

Bruen rejected means-end scrutiny and requires the government to justify regulations by analogy to historical firearm regulation.