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Constitutional Law Keyed to Choper
Citizens United v. FEC
Citation:
588 U.S. 310, 130 S.Ct. 876, 175 L.Ed.2d 753 (2010).
InstructorMatthew Steinberg
CaseCast™ – "What you need to know"
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- Topic: Identifies the topic of law and where this case fits within your course outline.
- Parties: Identifies the cast of characters involved in the case.
- Procedural Posture & History: Shares the case history with how lower courts have ruled on the matter.
- Case Key Terms, Acts, Doctrines, etc.: A case specific Legal Term Dictionary.
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- The Case Brief is the complete case summarized and authored in the traditional Law School I.R.A.C. format. The Pro case brief includes:
- Brief Facts: A Synopsis of the Facts of the case.
- Rule of Law: Identifies the Legal Principle the Court used in deciding the case.
- Facts: What are the factual circumstances that gave rise to the civil or criminal case? What is the relationship of the Parties that are involved in the case. Review the Facts of this case here:
In January 2008, Citizens United released a film called “Hillary: The Movie,” a documentary arguing that Senator Hillary Clinton was an unsuitable candidate for President. Citizens United released this documentary in theaters and on DVD, but wished to also make the film through video-on-demand on cable and to promote the film with ads on broadcast and cable television.
The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA) prohibits corporations and unions from using their general treasury funds to make direct contributions to candidates or independent expenditures for “electioneering communication,” or speech expressly advocating the election or defeat of a candidate. Citizens United challenged the constitutionality of this provision of the BCRA.
- Issue(s): Lists the Questions of Law that are raised by the Facts of the case.
- Holding: Shares the Court's answer to the legal questions raised in the issue.
- Concurring / Dissenting Opinions: Includes valuable concurring or dissenting opinions and their key points.
- Reasoning and Analysis: Identifies the chain of argument(s) which led the judges to rule as they did.
- The Brief Prologue closes the case brief with important forward-looking discussion and includes:
- Policy: Identifies the Policy if any that has been established by the case.
- Court Direction: Shares where the Court went from here for this case.
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