Study guides
US Constitutional Law
2 guides for this subject — how to prepare, what to practise, and how to know it has gone in.
A practice question
Choose an answer and it is marked, with the explanation. From US Constitutional Law Practice Questions: 8 Core Issues.
Congress makes it a federal crime to possess a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school. The law has no requirement that the firearm or possession be connected to interstate commerce. A defendant challenges the law after being convicted for possessing a gun near a local school. Which is the strongest constitutional argument?
Under United States v. Lopez, Congress may regulate channels and instrumentalities of interstate commerce and activities that substantially affect interstate commerce. Possession near a school is non-economic, and the statute lacks a jurisdictional element tying each case to commerce. The aggregate-effects argument is strongest as a distractor, but the Court did not accept it for this non-economic activity.
A spoken answer, marked
An examiner's question, answered out loud and marked criterion by criterion. From US Constitutional Law Viva Questions: Oral Practice.
Examiner
A classmate says Marbury v Madison made the Supreme Court the only branch allowed to interpret the Constitution. Explain what Marbury established, identify its constitutional basis, and assess the classmate's claim.
You connected judicial review to Article III cases and controversies and the Supremacy Clause.
ImproveExplain that Article III supplies federal judicial power over cases arising under the Constitution, while Article VI establishes the Constitution as supreme law.
You said a court may decline to apply a statute that conflicts with the Constitution in a case before it.
ImproveMake clear that the decision concerned the Court's authority to decide the case and refuse effect to the conflicting statute.
You rejected the word 'only' but did not give a clear example of other constitutional interpreters.
ImproveDistinguish judicial review from the broader fact that Congress and the President also make constitutional judgments in carrying out their duties.
Your conclusion was generally correct but did not explain the limit of the Court's role.
ImproveConclude that Marbury established judicial review for cases before courts, not a rule that no other branch interprets the Constitution.
A strong answerMarbury v Madison (1803) established that a federal court may refuse to apply a statute that conflicts with the Constitution when deciding a case within its jurisdiction. Article III gives federal courts judicial power over cases arising under the Constitution, and Article VI makes the Constitution the supreme law. Marbury supports judicial review, but it does not establish that courts are the only branches to interpret the Constitution. Congress and the President also make constitutional judgments while performing their functions. The strongest answer distinguishes the judiciary's authority to resolve cases from a claim of exclusive interpretive authority.
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Guides
- US Constitutional Law Practice Questions: 8 Core IssuesWork through eight US Constitutional Law practice questions on federal power, speech, equal protection, due process, standing, and more.
- US Constitutional Law Viva Questions: Oral PracticePractise US constitutional law viva questions with a repeatable answer structure, case-based scenarios and a practical self-marking method.
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