1. Creates the three branches of government: The Legislative, Judicial, and Executive and allocates powers to these branches

2. Protects individual rights by limiting the governments ability to restrict those rights

has authority to examine the acts of the other two branches of government and determine whether these acts are constitutional

Checks and Balances

the exectuive branch

Checks and Balances

The Legislative Branch

A clause in the constitution that grants Congress the power "to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with Indian tribes."

Has the greatest impact on business that any other provision in the constitution.

Also gives the authority to regulate interstate commerce

commerce that moves between states or that affects commerce between states.

The federal government may regulate interstate commerce that crosses state borders or intrastate commerce that affects interstate commerce

Regulated activity does not have to be in interstate commerce

Any intrastate commerce that effects interstate commerce is subject to federal regulation

Police Power

(state and local gov't regulation of business)

• States may enact laws that protect or promote the public health, safety, morals, and general welfare as long as the law does not unduly burden interstate commerce

• provides certain Freedoms and protections to individuals and business
• protects against gov't: from the intrusion of the gov't, not from individuals, or businesses
• Ten amendments added in 1791
• Due Process Clause of 14th amendment extented it to cover the states

• The first amendment
• the right to engage in oral, written, and symbolic (ex. stripping) speech

Fully Protected Speech

(freedom of speech)

cannot be regulated or prohibited by gov't, anywhere or anytime.

Political speech is included in fully protected speech ( you can say anything about politics)

Limited Protected Speech

(freedom of speech)

• maybe subject to time, place, and manner restrictions
• cannot be forbidden, but can be restricted: offensive speech and commercial speech
• examples: TV language restrictions, restrictions on cigarette advertising

Unprotected Speech

(freedom of speech)

• Maybe forbidden

1. Dangerous speech (yelling fire when no fire)
2. fighting words intended to provoke hostile reactions
3. speech that incites the violent overthrow of the gov't
4. defamatory speech (lie about someone)
5. child pornography

Freedom of Religion

also first amendment

• The constitution requires federal, state, and local gov'ts to be neutral toward religion
• Businesses aren't forbidden from religious discrimination, only gov't is

Standards for reviewing equal protection cases

(Equal Protection Clause)

KNOW FOR TEST

1. Strict Scrutiny Test - applies to classifications based on race (any case that involves race)
2. Intermediate Scrutiny test - applied to classifications based on other protected classes other than race (ex. sex or age)
3. Rational Basis Test - applied to classifications not involving a suspect or protected class (everything else)

• In bot 5th and 14th (applies to state and local gov't action) amendements
• states that no person should be deprived of lift, liberty, or property without due process of the law (must be properly notified the gov't is doing it, why its being done, and allow the others to be heard)

• Requires government laws to be clear and not overly broad
• the test is whether a reasonable person could understand the law (collective understanding)
• laws failing test are delared void vagueness

• requires the gov't to give a person proper notice and hearing before depriving that person of his or her life, liberty or property.
• the same process must be used for everyone fairly

Eminent Domain

(Procedural Due Process)

• gov't may take property for public purpose after sufficient notice and hearing
• at anytime, must be for pucblic use and must pay market price (or higher)
• A condemnation trial is a hearing where the owners can take the gov't to trial to abject to them taking it or how much they're offering for it

prohibits states from enaction laws that unduly discriminate in favor of their residents ( against non-citzens)

Corporations not protected

• french for "wrong"
• under tort law, an injured party can bring a civil lawsuit to seen compensation for a wrong done to party or party's property
• criminal law is gov't vs. private party (offender)
• civil law is privat party vs. private party

• monatary damages that are sought from the offending party
• they are intended to compensate the injured party for the injury suffered
• tort law imposes a duty on person and business agents not to intentionally or negligently injure others in society

• law protects a person from unauthorized touching, restraint, or other contact (physical nature)
• also protects a person's reputation and privacy
• violations of these rights are actionable as torts

• the threat of immediate harm or offensive contact or any action that arouses reasonable apprehension of imminent harm
• actual physical contact is unnacessary

• unauthorized and harmful or offensive physical contact with another person
• actual physical contact is unnecessary between victim and perp (must have SOME physical contact) ex. if they hit you with a 2x4 or shoot you with an arrow.
• may accompany assault but doesn't have to (ex. if they hit you from behind, no imminent fear raised because you didnt see it coming

• party A intends to harm party B but ends up hurting party C
• law transfers perp's intent from target (party B) to actual victim (party C)
• victim can sue perpetrator

• the intentional confinement or restraint of another person without authority or justification and without that person's consent (physical force, barriers, threats of physical violence, false arrest)
• threat of future harm or maral pressure not enough
• must be complete imprisonment (locking one of several doors not sufficient**)

• merchants my stop, detain, and investigate suspectedc shoplifters without being held liable for false imprisonment if:

1. there are reasonable grounds for the suspicion
2. suspects are detaained for only a reasonable time and manner (minimum time to solve problem)
3. investigationsare conducted in reasonable manner

• an attempt by another person to appropriate a living person's name or identify for commercial puposes (own gain)
• also known as the tort of appropriation
• EX: Big Ten tires using Julio Jones' picture in advertisement w/o his consent

False statements made by one person about another. The plaintiff must prove:

1. the defendant made an untrue statement of fact about the plaintiff
2. the statement was intentionally or accidentally published (includes told orally) to a third party

• Slander is the oral defamation of charcter ("short shelf-life" doesn't last long)
• Libel is a false staement that appears in a letter, newspaper, magazine, book, photo, video, etc (written and lasts much longer)
• KNOW DIFFERECE FOR TEST

New York Times vs. Sullivan

(Defamation of Character)

• untrue statement made about products, services, property, or reputation of a busness
• Also called product disparagement, trade libel, or slander of title

Intentional Misrepresentation

(Fraud)

• Wrongdoer deceives another person out of money, property, or something of value
• injured party can recover damages
• Lying to decieve

What must be proven for intentional misrepresentation

(KNOW)

• wrongdoer made a false representation
• wrongdoer knew representation was false and intended to decieve other party
• party must justifiably rely on misrepresentation (guy in trench coat selling watches is not fraud)
• must have actual injury (actual loss)

Tort that says a person whose extreme and outrageous conduct intentionally and rechlessly causes severe emotional distress to another person is liable for that emotional distress

also known as the tort of outrage and is not usually granted by itself

Real Property vs. Personal Property

(know differences)

• Real Property is land and anything permanently attached to that land (house)
• Personal Property are things that are moveable (automobiles, books, clothes, pets, etc)