The Law Dictionary for Everyone
Following is the case brief for Griggs v. Duke Power Co., 401 U.S. 424 (1971) Case Summary of Griggs v. Duke Power Co.: A group of African-American employees sued their employer, Duke Power Company, for a policy that mandated a high school diploma and satisfactory scores on two general aptitude tests in order to advance in the company. The lower […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, 798 N.E.2d 941 (Mass. 2003) Case Summary of Goodridge v. Department of Public Health: Seven same-sex couples were denied marriage licenses in the State of Massachusetts. They sued the government, stating that denying marriage to same-sex couples violates Massachusetts law. The state Superior Court granted the government’s motion […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc., 418 U.S. 323 (1974) Case Summary of Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc.: The family of a murder victim hired petitioner to be their attorney in a civil suit against the murderer. Respondent media organization published defamatory statements about petitioner, including statements that he was a Communist and framed the murderer. […]
Read moreThe term “condemnation” is used to define the situation wherein a local, state, or federal government seizes a citizen’s property, then compensates the owner for what was seized. An example of condemnation is a piece of property being condemned by the government due to a carbon monoxide leak. The owners of the property will be forced to move out, and […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Florida v. Riley, 488 U.S. 445 (1989) Case Summary of Florida v. Riley: Police viewed Riley’s backyard greenhouse from a helicopter at 400 feet and saw what appeared to be marijuana. After obtaining a warrant based on the observation, police searched Riley’s greenhouse and charged him with possession of marijuana. Following Riley’s motion, the trial […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Florida v. Bostick, 501 U.S. 429 (1991) Case Summary of Florida v. Bostick: Two officers boarded Terrence Bostick’s bus, questioned him, and asked him for consent to look in his luggage. They advised him of his right to refuse. Bostick gave consent, and cocaine was found in his luggage. Bostick moved to suppress the drugs […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Faretta v. California, 422 U.S. 806 (1975) Case Summary of Faretta v. California: Criminal defendant Faretta wished to represent himself in his criminal trial. The trial court, however, appointed a lawyer for Faretta. The court found that he did not knowing and intelligently waive his right to counsel. A jury convicted Faretta, and he was sentenced […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Eldred v. Ashcroft, 537 U.S. 186 (2003) Case Summary of Eldred v. Ashcroft: Congress passed the Copyright Term Extension Act, which extends a copyright from 50 years after the death of the author to 70 years. Petitioners, a group of individuals and businesses who benefit from works that come into the public domain, sued in […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Dolan v. City of Tigard, 512 U.S. 374 (1994) Case Summary of Dolan v. City of Tigard: Petitioner Dolan sought to make changes to her business property. The City of Tigard placed two conditions on granting Dolan permission — a public greenway to mitigate flooding, and a pedestrian/bicycle path. Dolan appealed in state court, claiming […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Coker v. Georgia, 433 U.S. 584 (1977) Case Summary of Coker v. Georgia: Petitioner was convicted of rape and other violent offenses. He was sentenced to death on the rape charge. The Georgia Supreme Court affirmed petitioner’s conviction and sentence. The U.S. Supreme Court reversed. The Court held that the death penalty for the […]
Read more