Explore tens of thousands of sets crafted by our community.
Law School Must-Know Cases
41
Flashcards
0/41
Case Facts and Importance: Ruled that the right to bear arms is not unlimited and that guns and gun ownership would continue to be regulated.
Name and Citation of the Case: District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008)
Case Facts and Importance: Overruled Plessy v. Ferguson, declared that racial segregation in public schools is unconstitutional.
Name and Citation of the Case: Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954)
Case Facts and Importance: Held that evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment, which protects against "unreasonable searches and seizures," may not be used in criminal prosecutions.
Name and Citation of the Case: Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961)
Case Facts and Importance: Established the principle of one person, one vote, ordering state legislative districts to be as equal as possible in population.
Name and Citation of the Case: Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533 (1964)
Case Facts and Importance: Established the principle that illegally obtained evidence must be excluded from trial in the federal courts.
Name and Citation of the Case: Weeks v. United States, 232 U.S. 383 (1914)
Case Facts and Importance: Affirmed that freedom of speech prohibited under the Smith Act includes the prohibition of advocacy of overthrowing the government.
Name and Citation of the Case: Dennis v. United States, 341 U.S. 494 (1951)
Case Facts and Importance: Held that misspending of funds by an administrator of federal funds could be prosecuted under the Fraudulent Claims Act.
Name and Citation of the Case: United States v. Wurts, 303 U.S. 414 (1938)
Case Facts and Importance: Set guidelines for police questioning of accused persons to protect them against self-incrimination and to secure their right to counsel.
Name and Citation of the Case: Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966)
Case Facts and Importance: Held that the 14th Amendment requires states to provide legal counsel to indigent defendants charged with a felony.
Name and Citation of the Case: Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963)
Case Facts and Importance: Upheld the constitutionality of campaign spending limits by candidates who accept public funding.
Name and Citation of the Case: Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1 (1976)
Case Facts and Importance: Upheld the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II as a valid exercise of executive power.
Name and Citation of the Case: Korematsu v. United States, 323 U.S. 214 (1944)
Case Facts and Importance: Prohibited states from banning the teaching of evolution in public schools.
Name and Citation of the Case: Epperson v. Arkansas, 393 U.S. 97 (1968)
Case Facts and Importance: Held that speech on the Internet receives the highest level of First Amendment protection, similar to that of print or written communication.
Name and Citation of the Case: Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union, 521 U.S. 844 (1997)
Case Facts and Importance: Declared school-sponsored Bible reading in public schools to be unconstitutional.
Name and Citation of the Case: Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 (1962)
Case Facts and Importance: Allowed for executive privilege but limited its scope, ruling that official records are subject to subpoena if relevant to a criminal prosecution.
Name and Citation of the Case: United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683 (1974)
Case Facts and Importance: Addressed the constitutionality of two provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Name and Citation of the Case: Shelby County v. Holder, 570 U.S. 529 (2013)
Case Facts and Importance: Upheld campus affirmative action policies, allowing race to be one of several factors in college admission policy.
Name and Citation of the Case: Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, 438 U.S. 265 (1978)
Case Facts and Importance: Held that burning the American flag is an example of permissible free speech, and government cannot prohibit such act.
Name and Citation of the Case: Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397 (1989)
Case Facts and Importance: Ruled that the right to donate money to political campaigns is protected under the First Amendment as free speech.
Name and Citation of the Case: Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1 (1976)
Case Facts and Importance: Determined that suspects must be informed of their rights before being interrogated by police.
Name and Citation of the Case: Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966)
Case Facts and Importance: Determined that the First Amendment does not require a complete separation of church and state; allowed a state to reimburse parents for the cost of busing their children to parochial schools.
Name and Citation of the Case: Everson v. Board of Education, 330 U.S. 1 (1947)
Case Facts and Importance: Recognized the constitutional right to privacy and paved the way for laws protecting patient confidentiality and informed consent in the healthcare industry.
Name and Citation of the Case: Griswold v. Connecticut, 381 U.S. 479 (1965)
Case Facts and Importance: Held that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 barred racial discrimination in private facilities open to the public.
Name and Citation of the Case: Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States, 379 U.S. 241 (1964)
Case Facts and Importance: Established judicial guidelines for defining obscenity, which is not protected by the First Amendment.
Name and Citation of the Case: Miller v. California, 413 U.S. 15 (1973)
Case Facts and Importance: Found that the Fourth Amendment applies to the states as well as to the federal government.
Name and Citation of the Case: Wolf v. Colorado, 338 U.S. 25 (1949)
Case Facts and Importance: Recognized that the Constitution protects the right of same-sex couples to marry as a fundamental right inherent in the liberty of persons.
Name and Citation of the Case: Obergefell v. Hodges, 576 U.S. 644 (2015)
Case Facts and Importance: Established the authority of the Supreme Court to declare an act of Congress unconstitutional.
Name and Citation of the Case: Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. (1 Cranch) 137 (1803)
Case Facts and Importance: Held that a right to privacy extended to a woman's decision to have an abortion, but that this right must be balanced against the state's two legitimate interests in regulating abortions: protecting prenatal life and protecting the mother's health.
Name and Citation of the Case: Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, 505 U.S. 833 (1992)
Case Facts and Importance: Established the accused's right to an attorney even if he or she cannot afford one.
Name and Citation of the Case: Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963)
Case Facts and Importance: Held that the use of pen registers is not a violation of Fourth Amendment rights, as there is no reasonable expectation of privacy.
Name and Citation of the Case: Smith v. Maryland, 442 U.S. 735 (1979)
Case Facts and Importance: Held that the exclusionary rule applies to evidence gained from an unconstitutional search or seizure by state officials.
Name and Citation of the Case: Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961)
Case Facts and Importance: Upheld students' First Amendment rights to free speech in school. Coined the phrase "students do not shed their constitutional rights at the schoolhouse gate."
Name and Citation of the Case: Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, 393 U.S. 503 (1969)
Case Facts and Importance: Limited Congress's power under the Commerce Clause and ruled that Congress could not compel states to implement federal regulatory programs.
Name and Citation of the Case: Printz v. United States, 521 U.S. 898 (1997)
Case Facts and Importance: Determined that the federal government has the power to regulate interstate commerce.
Name and Citation of the Case: Gibbons v. Ogden, 22 U.S. (9 Wheat.) 1 (1824)
Case Facts and Importance: Established separate but equal doctrine, allowing racial segregation.
Name and Citation of the Case: Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896)
Case Facts and Importance: Extended the right to bear arms to state and local governments.
Name and Citation of the Case: McDonald v. City of Chicago, 561 U.S. 742 (2010)
Case Facts and Importance: Determined that the First Amendment protects the right to conduct a peaceful public assembly.
Name and Citation of the Case: National Socialist Party of America v. Village of Skokie, 432 U.S. 43 (1977)
Case Facts and Importance: Ruled that the death penalty, as administered, constituted cruel and unusual punishment.
Name and Citation of the Case: Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238 (1972)
Case Facts and Importance: Established a woman's right to an abortion under certain circumstances.
Name and Citation of the Case: Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973)
Case Facts and Importance: Held that government-compelled speech is unconstitutional, including state laws requiring public school teachers to salute the flag and recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
Name and Citation of the Case: West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, 319 U.S. 624 (1943)
Case Facts and Importance: Ruled that the use of a racial quota system in college admissions was unconstitutional but that affirmative action programs could be constitutional under certain circumstances.
Name and Citation of the Case: Grutter v. Bollinger, 539 U.S. 306 (2003)
© Hypatia.Tech. 2024 All rights reserved.
