CONSTITUTIONAL LAW

1
CONSTITUTIONAL LAW

• CLASS 8
• January 25, 2007
• The Commerce Clause II
• Interpretation 1937-present

2
NLRB v. Jones Laughlin (1937) (CB p. 142)

• Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes wrote the
  majority opinion of the Court
• 5-4 decision

3
U.S. v. Darby (1941) (CB p. 144)

• Justice Stone delivered opinion of the Court
  (unanimous)

4
Wickard v. Filburn (1942) (CB p. 147)

• Justice Robert Jackson delivered opinion of a
  unanimous Court

5
COMMERCE POWER USED TO PROHIBIT DISCRIMINATION

• Commerce power used to prohibit discrimination in
  marketplace
• E.g. Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United
  States, 379 U.S. 241 (1964) (CB p. 150) and
  Katzenbach v. McClung, 379 U.S. 294 (1964) (CB p.
  151)

6
CLOSER JUDICIAL SCRUTINY1990s-?

• United States v. Lopez, (1995) (5-4) (CB p. 153)
• United States v. Morrison, (2000) (5-4)(CB p. 173)

7
MOST RECENT SUPREME COURT RULING

• Gonzalez v. Raich, (2005) (5-4) (Supp. p. 9)

8
MODERN LAW 3 THINGS CAN BE REGULATED UNDER THE
COMMERCE POWER

• 1. Channels of interstate commerce (e.g. roads,
  terms/conditions on which goods can be sold
  interstate)
• 2. Instrumentalities of interstate commerce (e.g
  airlines, railroads, trucking) and
  persons/things in intersatet commerce
• 3. any economic activity that has a substantial
  relationship with interstate commerce or
  substantially affects interstate commerce (read
  together with N P clause)