GVPT midterm study notes
Limitations on Judicial Power
(1) limited to reactive behavior (2) reliance on others to enforce decisions (3) need to preserve legitimacy
Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
(1996) Defines marriage as man-woman. No state is forced to recognize same-sex marriage
stare decisis
Let the decision stand; decisions are based on precedents from previous cases
Citizens united v FEC Majority/ DIssent
Majoirty: under the First Amendment corporate funding of independent political broadcasts in candidate elections cannot be limited Dissent:
original intent
Making judicial decisions by considering what the founding fathers meant in the Constitution
At the heart of the ACA
Must purchase minimum essential health insurance coverage for themselves and dependents, or pay a tax
Regualr concurring
justice signs on but adds their own views, add their own 2 cents
Brnovich v. DNC Dissenting Opinion
majority's decision narrowly reads the language of Section 2 of the VRA in a way that undermines its essential purpose to guarantee that members of every racial group have equal voting opportunities.
Types of Supreme Court Opinions
majority, (regualr and special concurring, dissenting
Afordable Care Act
mandate for all Americans to have health insurance; can stay on parents insurance until 26; cannot be denied insurance due to preexisting condition; free preventative care
Preclearance
mandated by the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the prior approval by the Justice Department of changes to or new election laws by certain States
NFIB v Sebelius dessenting opinion
the payment is like a penalty, not a tax therefore it shouldnt be constitutional (shoudlnt be treated as a tax)
Sources of Judicial Power
-Constitutional Power -Judicial Review -Federal Supremacy
Issues of original intent
- Broad principles - How do we judge intent properly?
Lower Federal Court differnces
- Confirmed by the senate, appointed by the president - THERE ARE NO ELECTIONS - Far more openings - Committee gatekeeping
President getting opinions from others
- Congress/ senators (when politically weak) - DOJ with divided court
General components of opinions
- Facts of a case - Legal justifications ' - Dispositions
Process for selecting a justice
- Informal vetting - Vacancy occurs - Formal vetting
Who benefits from oral arguements?
- Justoces (gain new info about a case and learn about other justices opinions) - Attorneys (If you make good arguments, youre more likely to win) - Court watchers (Can offer a signal to predict cases)
Justices using personal views for legal decisions
- Lack of electoral accountability - Cant be removed from office - They don't have to please anyone - No one reviews their decisions - They can choose what cases they want to take
What shapes the presidents selection?
- Nominees qualifications - Electoral concerns - Political party - Representation
State courts: selection differnces
- Partisan elections - Non - partisan elections
California v Texas
- Texas and several other states and individuals filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the individual mandate again, arguing that because the penalty was zero, it can no longer be characterized as a tax and is therefore unconstitutional. -Do the plaintiffs in this case have standing to challenge the individual mandate of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which now has a penalty of zero for not buying health insurance? - The plaintiffs lack standing to challenge the Affordable Care Act's minimum essential coverage provision. Justice Stephen Breyer authored the 7-2 majority opinion of the Court., No plaintiff in this case has shown such an injury
The ACA challenged two key provisions
- The individual mandate - The medicaid expansion provision
Who does the supreme court review
- US court of appeals - state courts when the dispute involves the US Constitution
problems with marbury v madison
- William Marbury had been appointed Justice of the Peace in the District of Columbia, but his commission was not delivered.
Citizens United v. FEC (2010)
- citiznens united made the hilary film making her seem bad corporations have the right to political speech - gave corporations freedom of speech that individuals have -allows corporations and unions to spend unlimited amounts of money on endorsements on political stuff - They released Hillary movie during the 60 day period before an election (BCRA)
The impact of congress
- court can decline cases if they know congress will disagree with the outcome - Anticipate possible congressional ovverides - Concern about potential attacks to the institution
Public opinion and the court
- desire to preserve legitamacy - mass public opinion can shape a justices decision
Issues with plain meaning
- meanings can change over time - Conflicting constiutional principles - Broad use of language
three changes are best viewed as being primarily motivated by exogenous events
- public indignation at the Committee's handling of the Black nomination accelerated the opening up of the process and the regularization of nominee testimony. Second, the introduction of live television coverage of the hearings contributed to the increase in senatorial questioning. Third, the equalization of questioning between members of both political parties is due principally to broader changes in the Senate as a whole
King v. Burwell (2015)
- who is eligible to receive the health insurance subsidies contained in the Affordable Care Act (ACA)? - Majority: the language of the statute clearly indicates that Congress intended the tax credits to be available through both types of exchanges - Dissent: the plain language of the statute clearly limits the tax credits to state-created exchanges Individuals using both the state-run and federally-run health insurance exchanges may receive health insurance subsidies from the federal government.
Parents Involved v. Seattle
-2007 -forced integration unconstitutional if no historic segregation to overcome
special concurrence
Justice agrees with the outcome but not the reasoning relied on by majority to reach the outcome
Two sides of the commerce clause
-A major constitutional grant of power to congress, along with taxing power -Places a potential limitation on explicit federal powers
Formal Vetting
-FBI background check - DOJ questionare - Senate hearings - senate vote
Vacancies without retirement or death?
-Increase in court size - impeachment (also known as sack incumbents)
Limitations of the 14th amendment
-No real economic or ladn reform -Democracts regained control of the US House in 1875 Republican political power fading -The 14th amendment established de jure, but not de factor citizenship and equality for blacks
Opinion Writing
-One of the members of the majority is assigned the task of writing a majority opinion -Drafts of the opinion are circulated, and changes may be suggested -Justices in the minority write one or more dissents
Due Process Clause
14th amendment clause stating that no state may deprive a person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law
Effects of Shelby County v Holder
886 polling stations shut down primarily in black counties
Judiciary Act of 1789
A law passed by the first Congress to establish the federal court system.
Federal Election Campaign Act
A law passed in 1974 for reforming campaign finances. The act created the Federal Election Commission (FEC), provided public financing for presidential primaries and general elections, limited presidential campaign spending, required disclosure, and attempted to limit contributions.
Affirmative Action
A policy designed to give special attention to or compensatory treatment for members of some previously disadvantaged group.
dissenting opinion
A statement written by a justice who disagrees with the majority opinion, presenting his or her opinion
amicus brief
A submission to the court from an amicus curiae, or "friend of the court," an interested individual or organization who is not party in the case.
cert pool
A system initiated in the Supreme Court in the 1970s in which law clerks screen cases that come to the Supreme Court and recommend to the justices which cases should be heard.
Litigants motives can fall into two categories
Advancing a direct personal interest Seeking to shape political outcomes or public policy
Citizenship Clause
All people born in the US are citizens of the US.
Judicial Review
Allows the court to determine the constitutionality of laws
Oral Argument (related to the Supreme Court)
An attorney's spoken statements and presentation before a court supporting or opposing the legal relief at issue.
interest group
An organization of people sharing a common interest or goal that seeks to influence the making of public policy
Equal Protection Clause
Constitutional guarantee that everyone be treated equally-14th amendment
NFIB v. Sebelius (2012)
Declared Obamacare constitutional, Roberts openly criticised Obamacare and is conservative but voted for it, - The commerce power may be used to regulate the activity, but here the government only deals with inactivity
14th Amendment
Declares that all persons born in the U.S. are citizens and are guaranteed equal protection of the laws
agenda setting
Determining which public-policy questions will be debated or considered.
Brnovich v. DNC (2021)
Does Arizona's OOP and ballot-harvesting restrictions violate sect2 of the VRA? No, by a 6-3 vote - Neither law imposes a burden that suprasses the usual burdens of voting; any racial impact is small in absolute terms
Marbury v. Madison (1803)
Established judicial review; "midnight judges;" John Marshall; power of the Supreme Court.
Challenges of the early institution
Lack of authority No permanent building Circuit riding
Virginia v. Loving
Interracial couples can now marry.
Fisher v. University of Texas (2013)
Issue: Fisher is a white female denied admission and claims that it is based on race Decision: Sided with UT on the basis of racial diversity in that Fisher was not an exceptional student, it was constitutional but the lower courts needed to compare this to the 14 amendment
Burwell v. Hobby Lobby (2014)
Held that closely held corporations have religious rights under the Restoration of Religious Freedom Act and that they could be exempt from Federal laws under religious freedom grounds if there was a less restrictive means for accomplishing the purpose of the regulation or law.
justices in the initial majority coalition have several options
Join Suggestion Threat (dissent) Wait Will write a separate opinion
implication
Judges' policy predispositions cannot be a complete way of explaining judicial decision making
Federalist 78 (Hamilton)
Judiciary branch can't tax, enforce laws, or bring the nation to war
Shelby County v. Holder (2013)
In 2013, the Supreme Court struck down a key provision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, that required that certain states with a history of voter discrimination obtain federal approval of any changes in voting laws. (p. 691)
Shelby County v. Holder Dissenting OPinion
In order to enforce the 14th amendment, Section 5 of the VRA cannot be struck down.
Plain Meaning
Interpret laws according to the commonly accepted meaning of the words used in the law
Issues with commerce clause
No definition of commerce No clear line between state and federal power No other provision to flesh it out
Is the Medicaid expansion provision of the ACA constitutional?
No, 7-2 vote
What factors influence a justices decision to assign the opinion draft to one colleague over another?
Organizational Efficiency - equity and issue expertise Personal case involvement Policy goals
Framer's Intent
Selection of justices by the president (No elections), Institutionaly more insulated from public opinion than congress
Midnight Judges
The 16 judges that were added by the Judiciary Act of 1801 that were called this because Adams signed their appointments late on the last day of his administration.
Commerce Clause
The clause in the Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 1) that gives Congress the power to regulate all business activities that cross state lines or affect more than one state or other nations.
Issues in the case
The law does not require the states to participate in the expanded Medicaid program, but non-participating states would face the loss of all of their federal Medicaid dollars -The states involved in this litigation claimed that congress had abused its spending powers
Circuit riding
The practice of traveling around the circuits by early Supreme Court justices and district court judges to hear appeals cases.
instiutionalization
The process of making something (a concept, social role, particular values, norms, ways of behaving) become embedded within a social system as an established custom or norm within that system
Shelby County v Holder majority opinion
These constriants made sense during the time, but aren't nessecary anymore, and is an uncounstitutional violation regarding regulating elections.
Brnovich v. DNC
Two particular Arizona voting policies at issue: - Ballots submitted in-person and out-of-precinct(OOP) are discarded entirely - Arizona law also prohibits "ballot harvesting" - using third parties to collect and submit early, mail-in ballots
Fisher v UT dessenting
University's admission policy treats race as merely one factor in the overall decision to admit a student, which is permissible under previous judicial precedent.
Majority opinion of the Supreme Court:
a judicial opinion agreed to by more than half of the members of a court
Voting Rights Act of 1965
a law designed to help end formal and informal barriers to African-American suffrage - no more literacy tests
litigant
a person involved in a lawsuit
California v Texas Dissent Opinion
arguing that Texas and the other state plaintiffs have standing and that because the "tax" imposed by the individual mandate is now $0, the mandate cannot be sustained under the taxing power.
Institutions seek to gain legitimacy
foster the public's acceptance of the institution and to enhance the power of the institution in the governing system
