Constitutional Law

Professor Solum

University of Illinois College of Law

 

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Partial Syllabus

(Last Revised on 2008-04-23)

 

Date

Reading

Topic

01/14

Week One

Web Reading: The United States Constitution (Skim and read Preamble, Article I Sections 1-3, Article II, Section 1, Article III, Section 1, Article V)

Introduction to the Course

01/15

Ch. 1, Assignment 1, pp. 1-16

Ch. 1, Assignment 2, pp. 16-25

 

Web Reading: Articles of Confederation (Skim & read Art. 2, Art. 9, and Art. 13)

Background Assumptions; Alleged Failures of the Articles of Confederation

01/16

Ch. 1, Assignment 3, pp. 25-44

 

Web Reading: The Bill of Rights

The Origins of the Bill of Rights

01/21

Week Two

MLK Holiday

No Reading

01/22

Ch. 1, Assignment 4, pp. 44-59

 

Web Reading: The United States Constitution, Article I, Section 8.

The Bank of the United States

01/23

Ch 1, Assignment 5, pp. 59-74

 

Web Reading: The United States Constitution, Article II, Sections 1 & 3.

 

Ch 1, Assignment 6, pp. 75-77

The Concept of Sovereignty, Fundamental Principles & Expressed Constraints

01/28

Week Three

Ch 1, Assignment 7, pp. 77-93

Ch 2, Assignment 1, 95-103

The Alien & Sedition Acts & The Marshall Court, The Judicial Power, Marbury v. Madison

01/29

Ch 2, Assignment 2, 103-118

Fletcher v. Peck, Martin v. Hunter’s Lesseee

01/30

Ch. 2, Assignments 3 & 4 part I, 118-153

McCulloch v. Maryland, Gibbons v. Ogden

02/04

Week Four

Ch 2, Assignments 4 part II & 5, Ch3, Assignment 1, Part 1, 153-170

Wilson v. Black Bird Creek Marsh Co., Barron v. City of Baltimore, Mayor of the City of New York v. Miln

02/05

Ch 3, Assignments 1 Part II & 2, 170-191

Cooley v. Board of Wardens, Prigg v. Pennsylvania

02/06

Ch. 3, Assignment 3, 191-227

Dred Scott v. Sanford

02/11

Week Five

Ch. 4, Assignment 1 & 2, pp. 229-261

Ex parte Merryman, The Prize Cases, Ex Parte Milligan

02/12

Class cancelled.

No reading

02/13

Class cancelled.

No reading

02/18

Week Six

No Class

No Assigned Reading

02/19

Ch. 5, Assignment 1, -263-299

The Slaughterhouse Cases, Bradwell v. State of Illinois

02/20

Ch. 5, Assignment 2, 299-329

United States v. Cruikshank, Strauder v. West Virginia, Presser v. Illinois, The Civil Rights Cases

02/22

Make-up, 3:00 4:15 p.m., Room B

Ch. 5, Assignments 3 & 4 Part I, 329-365

Yick Wo v. Hopkins, Plessy v. Ferguson, United States v. Dewitt, Hepburn v. Griswold, Knox v. Lee, Julliard v. Greenman

02/25

Week Seven

Ch. 6, Assignments 1 & 2, 367-402

United States v. E.C. Knight, Champion v. Ames, Hammer v. Dagenhart, Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad v. Chicago, Lochner v. State of New York

02/26

Ch. 6 Assignment 3 & 4, 402-427

Muller v. State of New York, Adkins v. Children’s Hospital, Meyer v. State of Nebraska, Pierce v. Society of Sisters. Bailey v. Alabama, United States v. Reynolds, Weeks v. United States

02/27

Ch 7, Assignments 1 &2, 443-473

Home Building & Loan Association v. Blaisdell, O’Gorman & Young v. Hartford Fire Insurance, Nebbia v. People of New York, West Coast Hotel v. Parrish, United States v. Carolene Products (especially footnote four, CB:470), United Public Works v. Mitchell

03/03

Week Eight

Ch 7, Assignments 3 & 4 Part I, 473-496

NLRB v. Jones & Laughlin Steel, United States v. Darby, Wickard v. Filburn, Ex Parte Quirin

03/04

Ch 7, Assignm;ent 5, 523-543

Youngstown Sheet & Tube v. Sawyer

03/05

Ch 8, Assignments 1 & 2 Part I, 545-585

Brown v. Board, Bolling v. Sharpe, Loving v. Virginia, Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States, Katzenbach v. McClung

03/10

Week Nine

Ch. 8, Assignment 2 Part II, 3, 4, & 5 585-616

Katzenbach v. Morgan, Lee Optical v. Williamson & Williamson v. Lee Optical, Mapp v. Ohio, Griswold v. Connecticut, Loving v. Virginia

03/11

Ch. 8, Assignment 6, 616-628, Ch 9, Assignment 1 Part I, 631-638

Roe v. Wade, South Dakato v. Dole

03/12

Ch 9, Assignment 1 Part II, & 2, 638-684

United States v. Lopez, United States v. Morrsion, Gonzales v. Raich

03/17

Spring Break

No Assigned Reading

03/18

Spring Break

No Assigned Reading

03/19

Spring Break

No Assigned Reading

03/24 Week Ten

Ch 9, Assignment 3, 684-694, Ch 10, Assignment 1, 705-739

City of Boerne v. Flores, Gregory v. Ashcroft, New York v. United States, Printz v. United States

03/25

Ch 10, Assignment 2, 739-769

Hans v. Louisiana, Ex Parte Young, Seminole Tribe of Florida v. Florida, Alden v. Maine

03/26

No class

No assigned reading

03/31 Week Eleven

Ch. 11, Assignments 1, & 2, 771-794

Oregon Waste Systems v. Department of Environmental Quality, Granholm v. Heald, South Central Timber v. Wunnicke, Hicklin v. Orbeck

04/01

Ch 11, Assignment 3, 794-820, Ch 12, Assignment 1 Part I, 821-832

U.S. Term Limits v. Thornton, United States v. Nixon

04/02

Ch 12, Assignment 1, Part II & 2 Part I, 838-854

Clinton v. Jones, Dames & Moore v. Regan, INS v. Chadha

04/07 Week Twelve

Ch 12, Assignment 2 Part II & 3, 854-898

Morrison v. Olson, Hamdi v. Rumsfeld, Hamdan v. Rumsfield

04/08

Ch 13, Assignment 1 & 2, 899-934

Baker v. Carr, Nixon v. United States, Bush v. Gore, Allen v. Wright, FEC v. Akins, John Doe v. George W. Bush, DeFunis v. Odegaard, Friends of the Earth v. Laidlaw Environmental Services

04/09

Ch 14, Assignment 1 & 2, 937-972

Regents v. Bakke, Grutter v. Bollinger, Gratz v. Bollinger, Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District

04/14 Week Thirteen

Ch. 14, Assignment 2, 3, & 4, 984-1023

Washington v. Davis, Frontiero v. Richardson, Craig v. Boren, United States v. Virginia, Cleburne v. Cleburne Living Center, Romer v. Evans

04/15

Ch. 15, Assignment 1, 1025-1050

Bowers v. Hardwick, Washington v. Glucksberg, Troxel v. Granville

04/16

Ch. 15, Assignment 2, 1050-1076

Planned Parenthood v. Casey, Washington v. Glucksberg, Gonzales v. Carhart

04/21 Week Fourteen

Ch 15, Assignment 3, 1076-1094, Chapter 6, Assignment 5, 427-429

Lawrence v. Texas, Schenck v. United States,

04/22

Ch 16, Assignment 1, 1101-1116, Ch 16, Assignment 3, 1146-1151

United States v. O’Brien, Texas v. Johnson, R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul, New York Times v. Sullivan,

04/23

Court of Appeals Decision

 

Read the transcript or listen to the oral argument in District of Columbia v. Heller

 

Link to transcript

 

Link to audio recording

District of Columbia v. Heller

04/28 Week Fifteen

No class.

Extra office hours, 9-12 a.m.

.

All assignments are from Constitutional Law: Cases in Context, unless otherwise indicated.