Card Type / Category

Name and year of case, statute, regulation or legal event. Examples. (1) Marbury v. Madison. (2) The 16th amendment. (3)

Concise description of the case facts, holding, or legal principle established. For non-case material, a concise description of provisions and import. Examples. (1) Federal courts can decline to enforce Congressional statutes, including jurisdictional statutes, that conflict with the Constitution. Finds Congress could not authorize Supreme Court to issue writs of mandamus against federal officials. (2) Authorizes Congress to tax income from all sources without apportionment, overturning bar on income tax as a direct tax.

A statement of a legal rule (constitutional, common law, statutory, regulatory) containing a deliberate mistake or inaccuracy. Examples: (1)"Congress can delegate broad authority to the executive to set criminal penalties without specifying any limits, as long as the intent to delegate is clear." (2) "42 U.S.C. section 1983 permits an action for damages against state officials provided they were actually acting within the scope of state authority at the time they violated someone's rights."

The corrected rule of law with a brief explanation of the error on the front. Examples: (1) There must still be an intelligible principle from which the Executive branch can distinguish permissible from impermissible implementations. Intelligible principle may be supplied by prior court decisions. (2) Ignores that statute permits lawsuits when defendants were acting 'under color of law.' More complete statement would discuss sovereign immunity and recent restrictions such as laws enacted pursuant to spending clause."

An evocative description of a case, statute, regulation or other legal event. Examples. (1) "Greatly narrowed scope of privileges or immunities clause of 14th amendment; involved butchers". (2) Prohibited slavery north of the 36¡30_ line in the Louisiana Territory. Ruled unconstitutional in Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857), raising separation of powers issues over CongressÕs authority to regulate slavery in territories."

The name of the case and its year or decade, Examples. (1) The Slaughterhouse Cases (1873); (2) The Missouri Compromise

A flawed short legal or factual argument. Examples: (1) "The contract for services is unenforceable because it is not in writing." (2) This testimony is inadmissible as hearsay. "Q. And seconds after you heard that crash, what did Mr. Jones (who has since died) say. A. He said ""Oh my God, that red Tesla just ran the stop sign and hit the pedestrian."

The primary logical, legal, or doctrinal problem with the argument on the front. Examples. (1) "A contract for services does not generally need to be in writing in order to be enforceable." (2) The statement of the deceased Mr. Jones likely falls within the excited utterance exception to the hearsay rule."

A misstatement or incomplete quotation of a statutory provision. Examples: (1) "Under the UCC, the parties if they so intend can conclude a contract for sale even though the price is not settled if and only if the contract is between merchants. (2) "28 U.S.C. 1332. The district courts shall have original jurisdiction of all civil actions where the matter in controversy exceeds the sum or value of $250,000, exclusive of interest and costs, and is betweenÑ(1)citizens of different States.

A list or description of the misstatements or omissions from the front.Examples: (1) the proviso requiring such contracts to be between merchants does not exist. (2) the amount in controversy requirement is currently $75,000. Also, the quotation is incomplete. There are other ways of satisfying section 1332.

Description of proposed testimony, physical evidence, or a courtroom action. Examples: (1) Plaintiff sues Defendant for causing a car accident. At trial, Plaintiff offers testimony from a witness: "Defendant always speeds through that intersection, running red lights." (2) On cross examination: "You swore you saw my client stab Mrs. Smith. But you don't go to church regularly do you? You don't even believe in God, isn't that true?"

The most likely objection (e.g., hearsay, relevance) and its likely disposition. Examples (1) "The testimony is almost certainly inadmissible under Rule 404(b). Habit evidence must show a regular, particularized behavior, not general tendencies, to prove DefendantÕs action on this occasion." (2) "The question violates Rule 610: Evidence of a witnessÕs religious beliefs or opinions is not admissible to attack or support the witnessÕs credibility."

A specific legal rule or doctrine. Examples: (1) "The policy rationales behind the statute of frauds." (2) "The policy rationales for the dormant commerce clause."

The underlying policy reason or justification for the rule's existence. Examples (1) (a) Prevent Fraud: Ensures written evidence reduces false claims in significant contracts.
(b) Promote Clarity: Requires clear, written terms to avoid misunderstandings in complex agreements.
(c) Encourage Deliberation: Mandates formal documentation, fostering careful consideration before entering binding contracts. (2) (a) Promote National Unity: Prevents states from enacting protectionist laws that disrupt interstate commerce. (b)
Ensure Economic Efficiency: Encourages free trade across states, reducing barriers to market access. (c)
Protect Federal Authority: Limits state interference with CongressÕs power to regulate interstate commerce.

A fact pattern. Examples: (1) A small business owner in a rural town hosts weekly bonfires on their private property to burn excess wood scraps from their furniture workshop, violating a federal regulation banning open fires within 500 feet of a residential structure, enacted to reduce air pollution affecting interstate tourism. Federal authorities fine the owner, claiming the regulation controls environmental impacts on interstate commerce. The owner challenges the regulation, arguing the bonfires are a local, non-commercial activity. (2) A public school librarian quietly recites a personal prayer during her lunch break in the libraryÕs reading room, visible to students. The school district suspends her, citing concerns that her prayer could be perceived as endorsing religion. The librarian sues, arguing the suspension violates her constitutional rights to free exercise and speech, as her prayer was private and non-disruptive.

The case or statute that most closely resembles it. (1) Lopez v. United States; (2) Kennedy v. Bremerton School District

The name of a specific legal test. Examples: (1) The Lemon Test; (2) The Intermediate Scrutiny requirements

The elements or prongs of the test.(1) (a) the government action must have a secular purpose; (b) its primary effect must neither advance nor inhibit religion; and (c) it must not foster excessive government entanglement with religion. (2) (a) The law must serve an important government interest. (b) The law must be substantially related to achieving that interest. Gnsburg Gloss: the law must have an exceedingly persuasive justification.

A legal term of art. Examples: (1) res ipsa loquitur; (2) actual malice

A concise definition of the term and its area of law. Examples: (1) Tort law. A doctrine that infers negligence from the very nature of an accident or injury. It applies when an accident wouldn't normally occur without negligence, and the defendant had control over the circumstances, shifting the burden of proof to them to prove otherwise. (2) A legal standard established in NY Times v. Sullivan (1964). It requires public officials to prove that defamatory statements were made with knowledge of falsity or reckless disregard for the truth, meaning the publisher entertained serious doubts about the statement's truth.

A specific, ambiguous phrase from a statute, contract or regulation and a brief factual context. Example: (1) The Town of Oakwood's "Green Spaces Act" prohibits "dogs, cats, birds, or other animals" in public parks. A resident is ticketed for bringing a pet goldfish in a bowl to the park. (2) Context: A venue's standard rental agreement states the fee includes "the main hall, the kitchen, and the restrooms." A renter assumes this also includes the attached outdoor patio, which is not mentioned. The renter wants to use the patio without paying an additional fee. May she?

The likely judicial interpretation of the phrase, citing a relevant canon of construction. Example (1) The ejusdem generis maxim resolves this. The specific words create a class of common, mobile pets that can roam freely. The general words "other animals" should be read as limited to this class, thus excluding the goldfish. (2) The maxim expressio unius est exclusio alterius applies. By expressly mentioning specific areas, the contract implies the exclusion of unlisted areas; therefore, the patio is not included.

A short fact pattern describing a legal wrong (e.g., breach of contract).

The most probable remedy a court would grant (e.g., expectation damages, specific performance).

Distinguishing Cases

The names of two similar, often confused cases. Example: (1) Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger. (2)

The key factual or legal distinction that separates the two cases' outcomes or reasoning. Examples: (1) The court struck down the undergraduate policy in Gratz because its automatic 20-point award for race was a mechanistic system. It upheld the law schoolÕs policy in Grutter because it used race flexibly in a holistic, individualized review. Both used strict scrutiny. Grutter no longer good law after SFFA v. Harvard. (2)

Factual relevance

A type of a case and a fact: (e.g., Negligence: X who had never met Y before, failed to rescue Y from drowning when X had a throw rope available)

How the fact is relevant, e.g. X had no pre-existing duty to Y

A fact pattern for which there is a numeric answer such as tax owed or damages. Example: (1). A buyer contracts to purchase 1,000 units of goods at $50/unit from a seller. The seller delivers 600 units and then breaches, refusing to deliver the remaining 400 units. The buyer covers by purchasing 400 units at $60/unit. The market price of the undelivered goods at the time the buyer learned of the breach was $55/unit. UCC Damages? (2) A single taxpayer has a taxable income of $200,000 and long-term capital gains of $100,000 taxed at 15%. Calculate the taxpayer's total tax liability, given the following tax brackets for ordinary income: 24% for income up to $200,000 and 32% for income above $200,000.

The correct numeric response. Examples: (1) Damages under UCC 2-712 (cover):
(Cover price - Contract price) x Quantity = ($60 - $50) x 400 = $10 x 400 = $4,000
Damages under UCC 2-713 (market price differential):
(Market price - Contract price) x Quantity = ($55 - $50) x 400 = $5 x 400 = $2,000
The buyer would be better off using the cover remedy under UCC 2-712, which yields $4,000 in damages.(2) Taxable income: $200,000 with $100,000 long-term capital gains. Tax on ordinary income ($100,000 * 24%) is $24,000. Tax on gains ($100,000 * 15%) is $15,000. Total tax liability: $39,000.

Quotation Source

A famous quotation from a case or statute. Examples. (1) Three generations of imbeciles are enough. (2) It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is. (3) "Just what our forefathers did envision, or would have envisioned had they foreseen modern conditions, must be divined from materials almost as enigmatic as the dreams Joseph was called upon to interpret for Pharaoh."

The case of statute from which the quotation comes. Example: (1) Justice Holmes in Buck v. Bell. (2) Chief Justice John Marshall in Marbury v. Madison. (3) Justice Robert Jackson's concurrence in Youngstown Sheet & Tube v. Sawyer

When did an event happen, a case get decided, a statute enacted, a constitutional amendment passed, Examples: (1) When was Koretmatsu decided"; (2) When was the 14th amendment ratified.

The year of the event; also provide a decade or period, Examples. (1). 1944 (towards the end of World War II). (2) 1868 (a few years after the end of the Civil War, during Reconstruction)

Who did something, can be a court, a justice, a jurisdiction, (1) "Wrote a famous concurrence in Youngstown with a three-part test". (2) First woman Supreme Court justice. (3) Chief Justice appointed by Republican President Dwight Eisenhower.

The identity of the court person or jurisdiction, Examples: (1) Justice Robert Jackson. (2) Sanda Day O'Connor. (3) Earl Warren

A question in the style of those asked on the famous television quiz show. Examples. (1) Category: Times of day. In his famed concurrence in Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer, Justice Jackson described this "zone" where the President acts without a congressional grant or denial of authority. (2) Category: Like Volcanos. This doctrine prevents states like New York from passing laws that give its own milk producers an unfair economic advantage over their cheese-loving neighbors in Vermont. (3) Category: Fashion Statements.
This profane remark worn on a jacket in court ended up protected by the first amendment in a Warren-era case.

An answer in the form of a question, please! Examples. (1) What is the Zone of Twilight. (2) What is the dormant commerce clause (dormant like a volcano!). (3) What is Fuck the Draft.