Current Issues in US Constitutional Law
SLN #: 19521Course Prefix: LAW-691
Course Section: 1004
Credit Hours: 3
Instructor(s): Bender
Course Books: View List of Books
Course Description:
This is an advanced course that addresses current important issues in U.S. Constitutional law. The topics each year depend on the issues that are prominent at the time the course is given. For the Spring, 2023, semester, the topics will include important cases that the U.S. Supreme Court has just decided (such as the Court's overruling of Roe v. Wade and its invalidation of a New York City law restricting the possession of guns in public places) and cases that it will hear and decide during its 2022-2023 Term (such as the continued validity of race-conscious affirmative action programs in colleges and universities and the ability of state courts to use state constitutions to invalidate state legislation that the Court has held does not violate the U.S. Constitution). There will also be discussion of non-case specific issues such as the extent to which President Trump’s three appointments to the Supreme Court have affected or will affect the development of U.S. constitutional law, whether the life-tenure system or the size of the Supreme Court should be changed and whether the Court should use a “shadow docket” to resolve important constitutional questions without oral argument and full briefing.
There is no casebook for this course. Class discussion will be based on unedited Supreme Court opinions and other materials available on the internet.
Additional Information:
Credit Hours: 3
Grading Option: Pass/Fail Only
Written Assignment: No
Graduation Writing Requirement: No
Flexible/Upper-Level Writing Requirement: No
Skills Requirement: No
Simulation Course: No
Experiential Learning: No
Seminar: No
Special Withdrawal Course: No
Final Exam Given: Yes
Final Exam Type: Take-Home
Mid Term Or Other Exam: No
Paper Or In-Class Presentation: No
Participation Points: No
Attendance Policy: Per Statement Of Student Policies
Teaching Method: ASU Sync
* The law school has a policy that is used to calculate credit hours. Please see the Statement of Student Policies.