Students should be able to recall, identify, and explain landmark U.S. Supreme Court cases, landmark legislation, and executive actions. They should also be able to explain their impact on law and society. Most landmark cases, legislation, and executive actions are drawn from Florida’s K-12 civics, U.S. government, and U.S. history course content.
These slides and the recorded presentation have been shared from Miami-Dade University
The landmark rulings listed below may be linked to FCLE questions. Each case has been paired with the best resources our subject matter experts have compiled.
Established that while states retain the power of taxation, the Constitution and the laws made according to the Constitution are supreme and cannot be controlled by the states.
The Dred Scott Decision Featuring Justice Neil M. Gorsuch - YouTube
Established portions of the Missouri Compromise of 1820 as unconstitutional, ruling that the plaintiff, Mr. Scott, was property and not a person.
Established that racial segregation in accommodations on a train did not violate the 14th Amendment to the constitution.
Established that the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment does not protect speech deemed as a "clear and present danger" which Congress has the power to prevent.
Established that the exclusion order of Americans of Japanese descent during WWII was lawful and did not show racial prejudice.
Brown v. Board of Education Case Brief Summary | Law Case Explained - YouTube
Established the principle that "separate but equal" educational facilities for racial minorities is inherently unequal and thus violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Established that all evidence in a criminal case obtained by searches and seizures in violation of the Fourth Amendment will be rendered inadmissible in state court.
Established that state reapportionment claims are justiciable in federal court.
Established that the state cannot hold prayers in public schools, even if participation is not required and the prayer is not tied to a particular religion.
Gideon v. Wainwright | Homework Help from the Bill of Rights Institute - YouTube
Established that the Sixth Amendment's guarantee of a right to assistance of counsel applies to criminal defendants in state court by way of the Fourteenth Amendment.
The Fifth Amendment requires that law enforcement officials advise suspects of their right to remain silent and to obtain an attorney during interrogations while in police custody.
Established that the students did not lose their First Amendment rights to freedom of speech when they stepped onto school property. In order to justify the suppression of speech, the school officials must be able to prove that the conduct in question would "materially and substantially interfere" with the operation of the school.
Established that the vague word "security" should not be used to "abrogate the fundamental law embodied in the First Amendment."
Established that an individual's interests in the free exercise of religion under the First Amendment outweighed the State's interests in compelling school attendance beyond the eighth grade.
Established that inherent in the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment is a fundamental “right to privacy” that protects a pregnant woman’s choice whether to have an abortion. However, this right is balanced against the government’s interests in protecting women's health and protecting “the potentiality of human life.”
By unanimous decision the Court held that neither the doctrine of separation of powers, nor the generalized need for confidentiality of high-level communications, without more, can sustain an absolute, unqualified, presidential privilege.
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke | BRI's Homework Help Series - YouTube
There was no single majority opinion in this case. Four of the justices contended that any racial quota system supported by the government violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The remaining four justices held that the use of race as a criterion in admissions decisions in higher education was constitutionally permissible. The Court managed to minimize white opposition to the goal of equality (by finding for Bakke) while extending gains for racial minorities through affirmative action.
The Court held that the First Amendment did not require schools to affirmatively promote particular types of student speech. Educators did not offend the First Amendment by exercising editorial control over the content of student speech so long as their actions were "reasonably related to legitimate pedagogical concerns."
The Court held that Johnson's burning of an American flag was protected expression under the First Amendment. The Court found that Johnson's actions fell into the category of expressive conduct and had a distinctively political nature. The fact that an audience takes offense to certain ideas or expression, the Court found, does not justify prohibitions of speech.
The Court held that although North Carolina's reapportionment plan was racially neutral on its face, the resulting district shape was bizarre enough to suggest that it constituted an effort to separate voters into different districts based on race.
Held that possession of a gun in a local school zone is not an economic activity that might, through repetition elsewhere, have a substantial effect on interstate commerce. The law is a criminal statute that has nothing to do with "commerce" or any sort of economic activity.
Noting that the Equal Protection clause guarantees individuals that their ballots cannot be devalued by "later arbitrary and disparate treatment," the per curium opinion held 7-2 that the Florida Supreme Court's scheme for recounting ballots was unconstitutional. Even if the recount was fair in theory, it was unfair in practice. The record suggested that different standards were applied from ballot to ballot, precinct to precinct, and county to county.
The court held that a ban on registering handguns and the requirement to keep guns in the home disassembled or nonfunctional with a trigger lock mechanism violate the Second Amendment.
McDonald v. City of Chicago, Illinois [SCOTUSbrief] - YouTube
The Supreme Court reversed the Seventh Circuit, holding that the Fourteenth Amendment makes the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for the purpose of self-defense applicable to the states.
The First Amendment protects the right to free speech, despite the speaker’s corporate identity.
The United States Congress has passed tens of thousands of bills since its first session in 1789. Since then, Congress has enacted numerous statutes considered to be landmark legislation, that is, laws which have had a significant impact on the American people. To be active participants in the governing process, students are first required to have some knowledge of these seminal events in American history.
The office of President of the United States is one of the most recognizable in the world. Students should recognize the exercise of formal presidential power, and should be able to recall, identify, and explain landmark Executive Orders and Treaties, significant constitutional powers that are granted to the president.