The Law Dictionary for Everyone
Following is the case brief for McCullen v. Coakley, 134 S. Ct. 2518 (2014) Case Summary of McCullen v. Coakley: Massachusetts law made it a crime to stand within 35 feet of an abortion clinic, unless you were an employee. Petitioners are people who approach women outside clinics, trying to dissuade them from having abortions. The law prevents them from […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Pickering v. Board of Education, 391 U.S. 563 (1968) Case Summary of Pickering v. Board of Education: The Board of Education fired a teacher for a letter he wrote that was published in the local newspaper. The teacher sued, claiming that his letter was protected by the First Amendment. The Board countered that his […]
Read moreThe Lemon Test is a test courts use to determine whether governmental action violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the Constitution. For example, the Lemon Test is a court’s tool used to rule on whether the government tried to prohibit the freedom of religious expression. Courts can also use the Test to determine whether the government attempted […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association, 564 U.S. 786 (2011) Case Summary of Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association: Video game and software companies sought to stop enforcement of a California law that banned sale or rental of violent video games to minors. The lower courts held that the law violated the First Amendment. The U.S. […]
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 moreThe term “1st Amendment” is the term used to identify Amendment I to the United States Constitution. Also, a part of the Bill of Rights, the 1st Amendment spells out several basic rights granted to U.S. citizens. It guarantees freedom of worship, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and the right to assemble peacefully. To explore this concept, consider the […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Lynch v. Donnelly, 465 U.S. 668 (1984) Case Summary of Lynch v. Donnelly: The City of Pawtucket has displayed a creche (Nativity scene) for the last 40 years as part of its annual Christmas display in the center of town. Respondents challenged the creche display as a violation of the Establishment Clause of the […]
Read moreFollowing is the case brief for Sheppard v. Maxwell, 384 U.S. 333 (1966) Case Summary of Sheppard v. Maxwell: Sheppard was accused of killing his pregnant wife. He maintained his innocence, but the case became very highly publicized, clearly characterizing Sheppard as the killer. The publicity was so intense, in fact, that numerous incriminating stories were written about it, and […]
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 Santa Fe Independent School Dist. v. Doe, 530 U.S. 290 (2000) Case Summary of Santa Fe Independent School Dist. v. Doe: Santa Fe High School had a student school chaplain, approved by the school administration, who would read prayers over the public announcement system before home football games. Several families filed suit, claiming that […]
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