Law Commons^™

Discarding The North Dakota Dictum: An Argument For Strict Scrutiny Of The Three-Tier Distribution System, Amy Murphy

Michigan Law Review

In Granholm v. Heald, the Supreme Court held that states must treat instate and out-of-state alcoholic beverages equally under the dormant Commerce Clause and established a heightened standard of review for state alcohol laws. Yet in dictum the Court acknowledged that the three-tier distribution system-a regime that imposes a physical presence requirement on alcoholic beverage wholesalers and retailers-was "unquestionably legitimate." Though the system's physical presence requirement should trigger strict scrutiny, lower courts have placed special emphasis on Granholm's dictum, refusing to subject the three-tier distribution system to Granholm's heightened standard of review. This Note argues that the dictum should be …

Dissing Congress, Ruth Colker, James J. Brudney

Michigan Law Review

The Supreme Court under Chief Justice Rehnquist's recent leadership has invalidated numerous federal laws, arguably departing from settled precedent to do so. The Rehnquist Court has held that Congress exceeded its constitutional authority in five instances during the 2000-01 Term, on four occasions during the 1999-2000 Term and in a total of twenty-nine cases since the 1994-95 Term. Commentators typically explain these decisions in federalism terms, focusing on the Court's use of its power to protect the States from an overreaching Congress. That explanation is incomplete and, in important respects, unpersuasive. The Rehnquist Court has not been as solicitous of …

Laws As Treaties?: The Constitutionality Of Congressional-Executive Agreements, John C. Yoo

Michigan Law Review

Only twice in the last century, in 1919 with the Treaty of Versailles, and two years ago with the comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty, has the Senate rejected a significant treaty sought by the President. In both cases, the international agreement received support from a majority of the Senators, but failed to reach the two-thirds supermajority required by Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution. The failure of the Versailles Treaty resulted in a shattering defeat for President Wilson's vision of a new world order, based on collective security and led by the United States. Rejection of the Test-Ban Treaty amounted …

Staking Out The Border Between Comandeering And Conditional Preemption: Is The Driver's Privacy Protection Act Constitutional Under The Tenth Amendment?, Rachel F. Preiser

Michigan Law Review

Congress passed the Driver's Privacy Protection Act of 1994 ("DPPA") in response to state sales of personal information contained in motor vehicle records to individuals and to direct marketing companies who use it to identify select groups of prospective customers for particular products. Thirty-four states sell their department of motor vehicles ("DMV") records to individual citizens and to direct marketers, essentially allowing their unregulated distribution to any party seeking them. This practice of selling and distributing personal information has serious implications for the privacy and safety of individual citizens. In considering the DPP A, Congress dwelt in particular on the …

The Commerce Clause Meets The Delhi Sands Flower-Loving Fly, John Copeland Nagle

Michigan Law Review

The protagonist in our story has six legs, is one inch long, and dies two weeks after it emerges from the ground. To the untrained eye, the Delhi Sands Flower-Loving Fly looks like, well, a big fly. Entomologists know better. This particular fly can hover like a hummingbird as it uses its long tubular nose to extract nectar from flowers. It can only live in particular fine soils - the Delhi sands - that appear in patches over a forty square mile stretch from Colton to Ontario, California. Today only a few hundred Delhi Sands Flower-Loving Flies survive in less …

Foreword, Louis H. Pollak

Michigan Law Review

Introduction to the Symposium Reflections on United States v. Lopez

The Constitution's Forgotten Cover Letter: An Essay On The New Federalism And The Original Understanding, Daniel A. Farber

Michigan Law Review

At the end of the summer of 1787, the Philadelphia Convention issued two documents. One was the Constitution itself. The other document, now almost forgotten even by constitutional historians, was an official letter to Congress, signed by George Washington on behalf of the Convention. Congress responded with a resolution that the Constitution and "letter accompanying the same" be sent to the state legislatures for submission to conventions in each state.

The Washington letter lacks the detail and depth of some other evidence of original intent. Being a cover letter, it was designed only to introduce the accompanying document rather than …

Enumerated Means And Unlimited Ends, H. Jefferson Powell

Michigan Law Review

United States v. Lopez can be read as a fairly mundane disagreement over the application of a long-settled test. The Government defended the statute under review in the case, the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990, along familiar lines as a permissible regulation of activity affecting interstate and foreign commerce.

In this essay, I do not address the question whether Lopez was an important decision. My concern instead is with the problem that underlies Lopez's particular issue of the scope of the commerce power: Given our commitment to limited national government, in what way is the national legislature actually limited? …

Commerce!, Deborah Jones Merritt

Michigan Law Review

In this article, I explore the Supreme Court's new definition of "Commerce ... among the several States."9 In Part I, I examine three new principles that Lopez announces and that could significantly rework the Court's Commerce Clause jurisprudence. Part II, however, shows that these principles must be understood in the context of almost a dozen factors narrowing the Supreme Court's Lopez decision. Part II also demonstrates that the lower courts have understood the contextual uniqueness of Lopez and already have distinguished the decision in upholding more than half a dozen broad exercises of congressional authority. Part III then shows that …

"A Government Of Limited And Enumerated Powers": In Defense Of United States V. Lopez, Steven G. Calabresi

Michigan Law Review

The Supreme Court's recent decision in United States v. Lopez marks a revolutionary and long overdue revival of the doctrine that the federal government is one of limited and enumerated powers. After being "asleep at the constitutional switch" for more than fifty years, the Court's decision to invalidate an Act of Congress on the ground that it exceeded the commerce power must be recognized as an extraordinary event. Even if Lopez produces no progeny and is soon overruled, the opinion has shattered forever the notion that, after fifty years of Commerce Clause precedent, we can never go back to the …

The Dormant Commerce Clause And State-Mandated Preference Laws In Public Contracting: Developing A More Substantive Application Of The Market-Participant Exception, Benjamin C. Bair

Michigan Law Review

This Note argues that the current focus on the relationship between states and their local governments as the key determinant of the constitutional validity of state-mandated preference laws is flawed. Instead, a court considering the validity of a state-mandated preference law should uphold such a law only if it distributes the benefits of state expenditures to state residents and does not excessively burden interstate commerce.

The Dormant Commerce Clause And State-Mandated Preference Laws In Public Contracting: Developing A More Substantive Application Of The Market-Participant Exception, Benjamin C. Bair

Michigan Law Review

This Note argues that the current focus on the relationship between states and their local governments as the key determinant of the constitutional validity of state-mandated preference laws is flawed. Instead, a court considering the validity of a state-mandated preference law should uphold such a law only if it distributes the benefits of state expenditures to state residents and does not excessively burden interstate commerce.

That Old Due Process Magic: Growth Control And The Federal Constitution, Keith R. Denny

Michigan Law Review

This Note argues that the interests of nonmunicipal federal citizens in being able freely to migrate about the nation are not adequately accounted for in a due process analysis which sanctions regulations with any, even a debatable, relation to the public welfare.

More adaptable and appropriate are the constitutional safeguards designed to protect the interests of nonmunicipal federal citizens: the privileges and immunities clause, the right of interstate travel, and the commerce clause. This Note concludes that GCOs should be measured against these safeguards and not the standards of the due process clause. When so reviewed, GCOs are found wanting. …

Is "Internal Consistency" Foolish?: Reflections On An Emerging Commerce Clause Restraint On State Taxation, Walter Hellerstein

Michigan Law Review

Whatever role "internal consistency" may come to play in the Court's commerce clause jurisprudence, it has already emerged as a doctrine that warrants our attention. This article traces the development of the doctrine, explores its implications, and considers its defensibility as a limitation on state taxing power. The article suggests that the results the Court reaches under the "internal consistency" doctrine could be reached by rigorous application of a more familiar commerce clause principle - one to which the Court has been less than faithful.

Territoriality And The Perils Of Formalism, Mark P. Gergen

Michigan Law Review

Recently in this journal Donald Regan published a pair of essays on CTS Corp. v. Dynamics Corp. of America. Much of the first essay elaborates his theory that what the Supreme Court should be doing and what it is doing under the dormant commerce clause is checking state laws adopted with a substantial protectionist purpose. The rest of the first essay and all of the second essay develop a different check on state lawmaking power in interstate affairs: a rule that states may not regulate conduct beyond their borders. He calls this the extraterritoriality principle. Elsewhere I have questioned …

Liquor Price Affirmation Statutes And The Dormant Commerce Clause, Ward A. Greenberg

Michigan Law Review

Part I of this Note examines the current state of the law in the liquor affirmation area. Part II argues that the twenty-first amendment may not be invoked to justify the extraterritorial impact of these statutes. The amendment does not preempt the commerce clause in the liquor area. While it gives the states free rein over liquor internally, it provides no basis for any extraterritorial projection of liquor price regulation. Part III considers the commerce clause analysis of Brown-Forman and argues that any interstate effects of these statutes will cause them to violate the commerce clause. This section argues that …

Dormant Commerce Clause Claims Under 42 U.S.C. § 1983: Protecting The Right To Be Free Of Protectionist State Action, Gregory A. Kalscheur

Michigan Law Review

This Note will attempt to show that some commerce clause violations should give rise to cognizable section 1983 claims. Two fundamental questions will be addressed: Is the commerce clause the source of any "rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution?" and if so, Does section 1983 protect whatever "rights, privileges, or immunities" grow out of the commerce clause? Part I will describe the present status of authority on this issue and argue that none of the conflicting opinions have adequately addressed the fundamental questions involved. Part II will demonstrate that the commerce clause does indeed protect a "right[], privilege[ …

The Second Death Of Federalism, William W. Van Alstyne

Michigan Law Review

In 1976, in National League of Cities v. Usery, the Supreme Court distinguished acts of Congress regulating commercial relations from acts of Congress commanding the terms of state services. Last Term, in Garcia v. San Antonio Metropolitan Transit Authority, the Court abandoned the distinction and held that it was principally for Congress to determine federalism questions. In this Comment, Professor Van Alstyne criticizes the Court on both counts.

Constitutional Law--Commerce Clause--1966 Amendments To Fair Labor Standards Act Extending Coverage To Employees In State-Operated Schools, Hospitals, And Related Institutions Held Constitutional--Maryland V. Wirtz, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

In 1966, Congress amended the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and for the first time extended the coverage of the minimum wage and overtime provisions to employees in state-operated schools, hospitals, and related institutions. The State of Maryland, joined by twenty-seven other states, brought an action to enjoin enforcement of the amendments insofar as they applied to these state-operated facilities and sought a declaratory judgment ruling the amendments unconstitutional. The states asserted that the amendments were unconstitutional in two respects. First, they contended that the "enterprise" concept of FLSA coverage, which extended the Act to cover all employees of an …

The Commerce Clause Held No Limitation To The Jurisdiction Of Federal Courts-Wahl V. Pan American World Airways, Inc., Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Three wrongful death actions were brought in a federal district court in New York by United States citizens as survivors of passengers killed in the crash in Turkey of an airplane owned and operated by defendant Middle East Airlines (MEA). MEA is a Lebanese corporation operating in the Middle East, Europe, and Africa, whose United States sales are made by its general sales agent, Pan American World Ainvays, Inc. The court held that maintaining a New York office and entering into a general sales agency agreement with Pan American to promote travel on MEA of passengers originating in the United …

Constitutional Law - Commerce Clause - Local Smoke Control Ordinance Not An Undue Burden On Interstate Commerce, John M. Niehuss

Michigan Law Review

In accordance with a scheme of federal ship inspection, appellant possessed certificates which permitted its ships to operate on the Great Lakes and which specified the type of boiler which might be used. While two of its ships were docked in Detroit, smoke was emitted from their boilers in violation of the minimum density and duration requirements of the Detroit Smoke Abatement Code. The equipment which appellant was then using made compliance with the ordinance impossible. When criminal proceedings were instituted against appellant, it brought an action to enjoin the City of Detroit from enforcing the ordinance on the theory …

Aliens - Deportation - Activity Consituting Membership In Communist Party, Mark Shaevsky

Michigan Law Review

Petitioner, an alien who had resided in the United States since 1914, joined the Communist Party in 1935 and during that year paid dues, attended meetings, and worked briefly at an official outlet for communist literature. He terminated his relationship with the party after approximately one year. At a hearing to consider his possible deportation, the petitioner disclaimed that he had held any belief in the forcible overthrow of government, stating that he had regarded the Communist Party solely as an instrument for securing economic necessities. The Board of Immigration Appeals upheld the hearing officer's finding that petitioner had been …

Constitutional Law - Commerce Clause - Federal Jurisdiction In Trade-Mark Infringement Proceedings Under The Lanham Act, Richard R. Dailey

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff's trade-mark, "Minute Maid," had been registered under the Lanham Act in 1952 and had been used in interstate commerce in connection with the sale of frozen fruit juice concentrates since that time. Defendant's trade-mark consisted in part of the words "Minute Made." Defendant used its mark wholly within the State of Florida in the processing and sale of frozen meat products. Both plaintiff and defendant were Florida corporations. In a suit for trade-mark infringement, jurisdiction of the federal district court depended. on the provisions of the Lanham Act. The complaint alleged damage to plaintiff's good will established in interstate …

Constitutional Law - Commerce Clause - State Statute Requiring Interstate Motor Carrier To Secure A Permit, Marvin O. Young S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Petitioner brought an action in an Arkansas state court to enjoin enforcement of a state statute which required all contract carriers using the highways of the state to secure a permit from the state Public Service Commission. The Arkansas Supreme Court found that five driver-owners who had been arrested while transporting petitioner's product in interstate commerce without such a permit were "contract carriers" within the meaning of the statute. Neither petitioner nor any of the drivers had applied for a state permit. Under the terms of the statute, granting of the permit was contingent on certain factors, such as the …

Constitutional Law - Power To Enact Federal Securities Act Of 1933

Michigan Law Review

The scope and implications of the Securities Act of 1933 have been set out in a recent issue of this Review. Broadly, the Act regulates the issue and sale of securities by requiring registration thereof with the Federal Trade Commission, by specifying certain data to be included in prospectuses relating to such securities, and by imposing sanctions in the form of penal and civil liabilities. The Act purports to be an exercise of the Congressional power "to regulate . . . commerce among the several states" and "to establish post offices and post roads." Various constitutional questions are involved but …

The Commerce Clause As A Restriction On State Taxation, J M. Landis

Michigan Law Review

In the discussion of a topic of this nature, my purpose is to restrict and not to enlarge the field of available evidence. The immense powers granted to Congress under the commerce clause are too well known, and the magnitude of their extension by the definition of the word "commerce" cannot be comprehended in a restricted dissertation such as this. Thus, the topic itself sets limits to our.range. It concerns itself with the existence of two powers, the paramount congressional control over commerce and the state's powers to tax. Both are inclined to encroach upon the prerogatives of the other, …

The Use And The Abuse Of The Commerce Clause, Fred'k H. Cooke

Michigan Law Review

The visible universe, from the giant constellation down to the infinitesimal corpuscle, is in a condition of eternal movement, or, we may say, a condition of eternal transportation. Indeed, there seems to be no phenomenon more universal than this transportation. But we are to here consider it merely as a phenomenon of life, in particular, of human life. In common with other higher animals, man possesses organs that characterize him as a being eminently fitted for transportation; his arms; his legs; even his vocal organs, fitted for transportation (or transmission) of the intangible, that is, of intelligence communicated from one …

The Commerce Clause, And Taxation Of Gross Receipts And Of "Intangible Property.", Frederick H. Cooke

Michigan Law Review

The decision in Galveston, Harrisburg &c. Ry. Co. v. Texas curiously, perhaps even painfully, illustrates the confusion that has resulted from the establishment by the Supreme Court of what seem to me to be incompatible rules of taxation. As is well understood, the commerce clause of the Federal Constitution imposes certain restrictions upon action under the authority of a State. That is to say, it is a general rule that has been frequently applied, that no restriction by way of prohibition or otherwise may be validly imposed under the authority of a State upon transportation within the scope of the …

The Commerce Clause Of The Federal Constitution And Two Recent Cases Dealing With It, S. S. Gregory

Michigan Law Review

In the historic case of M'Culloch v. Maryland, CHIEF Justice Marshall said, referring to the Federal Government: "This government is acknowledged by all to be one of enumerated powers. The principle that it can exercise only the powers granted to it, would seem too apparent to have required to be enforced by all those arguments which its enlightened friends, while it was depending before the people, found it necessary to urge. That principle is now universally admitted, but the question respecting the extent of the powers actually granted is perpetually arising and will probably continue to arise as long as …