The Law Dictionary for Everyone
Following is the case brief for Nelson v. Colorado, 137 S. Ct. 1249 (2017) Case Summary of Nelson v. Colorado: Petitioners Nelson and Madden were convicted in Colorado court, in separate cases, on sexual assault charges. Their convictions were subsequently overturned. They then sought a refund of the fees and costs they paid to the State in connection with their […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Mathews v. Eldridge, 424 U.S. 319 (1976) Case Summary of Mathews v. Eldridge: Respondent Eldridge, who was receiving Social Security disability benefits, was notified that his disability benefits would be terminated based on his answers to a questionnaire and his medical records. Eldridge then sued in federal court, alleging that due process requires an […]
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 NAACP v. Alabama, 357 U.S. 449 (1958) Case Summary of NAACP v. Alabama: The State of Alabama had a business statute that required foreign corporations to qualify with State officials before doing business in the State. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a non-profit corporation created in New York. […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Ingraham v. Wright, 430 U.S. 651 (1977) Case Summary of Ingraham v. Wright: Corporal punishment was allowed in Florida schools, provided that the punishment was not “degrading or unduly severe.” Two students at a Florida middle school were subjected to particularly harsh corporal punishment. Families of the students filed a federal suit against the […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Loving v. Virginia, 388 U.S. 1 (1967) Case Summary of Loving v. Virginia: The State of Virginia had a law forbidding interracial marriages. An interracial couple from Virginia, the Lovings, married in Washington D.C. to avoid the Virginia law, but later settled in Virginia. When caught living together in Virginia, the couple was convicted […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for McDonald v. Chicago, 561 U.S. 742 (2010) Case Summary of McDonald v. Chicago: Chicago residents, concerned about their own safety, challenged the City of Chicago’s handgun ban. Building on the Court’s recent decision in Heller, the petitioners sought to have the Second Amendment apply to the States, either under the Fourteenth Amendment’s Privileges or […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Obergefell v. Hodges, 135 S. Ct. 2534 (2015) Case Summary of Obergefell v. Hodges: Petitioners, a number of same-sex couples, sued four states that denied marriage licenses to those couples because those states defined marriage as being a union between one man and one woman. Petitioners won in all of the federal district courts […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Nebbia v. New York, 291 U.S. 502 (1934) Case Summary of Nebbia v. New York: The New York Legislature created a Milk Control Board, which had the power to fix milk prices to help milk farmers make a living during the Great Depression. Nebbia, a store owner, sold milk at a price lower than […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Burnham v. Superior Court, 495 U.S. 604 (1990) Case Summary of Burnham v. Superior Court: While traveling to California to conduct business and visit his children, petitioner was served with divorce papers by his estranged wife. Petitioner moved to quash service, claiming that California did not have jurisdiction over him because the personal service […]
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