The Law Dictionary for Everyone
The term legal counsel refers to the services provided by a person who studies or practices law. Used interchangeably with attorney or lawyer, it also describes someone who gives legal advice or represents clients in court proceedings. Sometimes, the term refers to an attorney that works exclusively for a company or agency. To explore this concept, consider the following legal […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Buck v. Bell, 274 U.S. 200 (1927) Case Summary of Buck v. Bell: A Virginia statute allowed for the forced sterilization of “feeble minded” people to protect the “health of the state.” Carrie Buck, who was mentally disabled, as was her mother and daughter, was ordered to be sterilized pursuant to the statute. Buck […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Katzenbach v. McClung, 379 U.S. 294 (1964) Case Summary of Katzenbach v. McClung: Ollie’s Barbecue in Alabama refused to serve African-Americans in the dining area, and only allowed African-Americans to get food through take-out service. The owner of Ollie’s sued to prevent enforcement of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 on his restaurant, claiming […]
Read moreConstitutional rights refer to the rights granted to citizens by the Constitution of the United States. These rights, set forth in the first 10 Amendments, are known as the “Bill of Rights.“ An example of Constitutional Rights is a person’s freedom of speech or a person’s right to bear arms. To explore this concept, consider the following constitutional rights definition. […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Abrams v. United States, 250 U.S. 616 (1919) Case Summary of Abrams v. United States: A small group of Russian immigrants produced leaflets in response to U.S. troops being on Russian soil for operations during WWI. The leaflets called for a strike at ammunition plants so that the U.S. would not have weapons to […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Hirabayashi v. United States, 320 U.S. 81 (1943) Case Summary of Hirabayashi v. United States: Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt ordered that curfews and relocation be ordered for Japanese-Americans on the West Coast. The orders, which were quickly enacted into law, were meant to protect the country from sabotage and espionage […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul, 505 U.S. 377 (1992) Case Summary of R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul: R.A.V. and other teenagers burned a cross on an African-American family’s lawn. R.A.V. was charged under St. Paul’s hate-crime ordinance, and he challenged the constitutionality of the ordinance. The trial court found the ordinance violative […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Washington v. Davis, 426 U.S. 229 (1976) Case Summary of Washington v. Davis: Four times as many African-Americans failed a District of Columbia Police Department officer-qualifying test compared to whites. Two African-Americans who failed the test sued in federal court, claiming that the test violated the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. The […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Milliken v. Bradley, 418 U.S. 717 (1974) Case Summary of Milliken v. Bradley: The Detroit branch of the NAACP brought suit in federal court because of the continuing segregation in Detroit’s public schools. The District Court, noting that Detroit’s segregation was due to State-imposed action, adopted a desegregation plan that included the 53 districts […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, 402 U.S. 1 (1971) Case Summary of Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education: Having implemented a desegregation plan, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system still had de facto segregation, with many African-American students still attending many schools that were at least 99% African-American. Petitioner Swann sued, and the District Court […]
Read more