Constitutional Law

To view or download the 2021 Supplement to this book click here.

The authors of this casebook are committed to reflect fully the dynamism, controversy, and excitement that characterize contemporary constitutional law. While generally striving for brevity, the authors lightly edit cases where the Court appears to be embarking on a new doctrinal course so that sharply different constitutional philosophies are fully and fairly presented.

Features of the new Eighth Edition include:

• Hamdan v. Rumsfeld — the legality of the use of military commissions by the Executive Branch.
• Boumediene v. Bush — alien enemy combatants detained at Guantanamo and "the constitutional privilege of habeas corpus".
• District of Columbia v. Heller and McDonald v. City of Chicago — the personal right to keep and bear arms vis-a-vis federal and state governments.
• Gonzales v. Carhart — limiting the abortion right.
• United Haulers Association, Inc. v. Oneida-Herkimer Solid Waste Management Authority — state regulation of solid waste and the dormant Commerce Clause
• Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1 — affirmative action in the public schools.

In the area of free expression, among the many cases featured are:

• Holder v. Humanitarian Law Project — national security v. political advocacy.
• Snyder v. Phelps — offensive speech and funeral picketing.
• Morse v. Frederick — student speech in the high schools.
• Garcetti v. Ceballos — free expression rights of government employees.
• United States v. Stevens — animal cruelty and the limits of freedom of expression.
• Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association — protecting children from violent video games.
• Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission — unleashing campaign spending by corporations and unions.

The new 8th edition includes some of the latest law review literature as well as the leading constitutional cases covered in the previous edition.

Constitutional Law: Principles and Policies is updated annually with a supplement addressing recent developments in the area of Constitutional Law.

This book also is available in a three-hole punched, alternative loose-leaf version printed on 8.5 x 11 inch paper with wider margins and with the same pagination as the hardbound book.