Spring, 2012
Leora Harpaz


First Amendment Rights

Required Casebook: Sullivan & Gunther, First Amendment Law (4th edition, 2010, Foundation Press, ISBN:9781599417561). Additional reading assignments will be from the electronic version of the 2010 supplement or posted online as part of the listed assignment.
 
First Amendment:  "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

Grading:  There will be a three-hour closed book examination. Grades will be based exclusively on exam performance.

Attendance Policy:  ABA Standard 304(d) requires “regular and punctual” class attendance. To implement this policy, students will be required to initial an attendance sheet for each class. Failure to initial the attendance sheet will be counted as an absence. Students must initial the attendance sheet for themseleves. Asking another student to write your initials on the sheet when you are absent in order to falsely indicate presence in class is a violation of the Honor Code. Students who are absent from more than 20% of regularly scheduled classes (more than 6 classes) will be administratively withdrawn from the course. Students who miss 5 classes will be sent a warning letter by email alerting them to the fact that they are in danger of administrative withdrawal. 


Assignments

NOTE:  THIS IS A PARTIAL LIST OF ASSIGNMENTS.  IT WILL BE UPDATED PERIODICALLY TO ADD MORE ASSIGNMENTS TO THE LIST AS THE SEMESTER PROGRESSES.

1. First Amendment: An Overview and Clear and Present Danger
1-19 (First Amendment History, Theory and Jurisprudence and Schenck v. United States, Frohwerk v. United States, and Debs v. United States)
        
2. Incitement to Violence
19-38 (thru note 3) (Abrams, Masses Publishing Co., Gitlow v. New York, Whitney v. California)

3. From Clear and Present Danger to the Modern Incitement Test
38-52 (Dennis, Bond v. Floyd, Brandenburg v. Ohio, Hess, Claiborne Hardware, Rice v. Paladin Enters.)

4. Fighting Words and Hostile Audiences
51-64 (Cantwell, Chaplinsky, Gooding, Texas v. Johnson, Cohen v. California, Terminiello, Feiner, Edwards, Cox, Gregory)

5. Libel
66-78 (Beauharnais, New York Times, Butts, Walker, Rosenbloom, Gertz, Dun & Bradstreet)

6. Non-Defamation Torts
78-85 (Hustler Magazine v. Falwell, Time, Inc., Cohn, Florida Star, Bartnicki, Zacchini)
Snyder v. Phelps
       
7. Hate Speech
85-88 (National Socialist Party v. Skokie, Smith v. Collin)
In the Matter of the Welfare of R.A.V.     
Excerpts from Briefs in R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul
88-103 (R.A.V., Wisconsin v. Mitchell, Watts v. United States, Virginia v. Black)

8. Obscenity
103-121 (Roth, Kingsley, Stanley v. Georgia, Miller, Paris Adult Theatre, Post-Miller decisions)

9. Child Pornography, Depictions of Animal Cruelty, and Violent Video Games
122-127 (Ferber, Osborne, Free Speech Coalition)
United States v. Stevens
Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association
   
10. Sexually Explicit But Non-Obscene Expression
133-150 (Erznoznik, Schad, Young v. American Mini Theatres, Renton, Almeda Books, Pacifica, FCC v. Fox Television Stations
   
11. 150-164 (Rowan, Consolidated Edison, Bolger, Sable, Denver Area Educational Telecommunications Consortium, Playboy Entertainment, Reno v. ACLU, Ashcroft v. ACLU (2002), Ashcroft v. ACLU (2004))

12. Commercial Speech
164-180 (Valentine v. Chrestensen, Pittsburgh Press, Virginia Pharmacy, Bolger, Fox, Linmark, Carey, lawyer advertising, Central Hudson)
Additional Excerpt from Bolger
Excerpt from Zauderer
Excerpt from Milavetz Concerning Zauderer

13. 180-196 (Fox, Metromedia, Discovery Network, United Reporting, Tourism Company of Puerto Rico, Edge Broadcasting, Coors Brewing, 44 Liquormart, Wileman Bros., Greater New Orleans Broadcasting, Lorillard Tobacco, Thompson)

14. Content-Based vs. Content-Neutral Regulations and Symbolic Conduct
197-214 (thru note 3) (Mosely, Carey, Simon & Schuster, Burson v. Freeman, Republican Party of Minnesota v. White, Boos v. Barry, O'Brien)
    
15. Symbolic Expression
216-231 (Street, Smith, Spence, Johnson, Eichman, Barnes, Pap’s A.M.)
Excerpt from Hurley

16. Overbreadth and Vagueness
344-358 (Gooding, Robel, Broadrick, Ferber, Free Speech Coalition, Virginia v. Hicks, Brockett, Schaumburg, Munson, Telemarketing Associates, Oakes, Osborne, Houston v. Hill, Jews for Jesus)
358-360 (Coates, Finley)

17. Prior Restraints and Speech in Public Forums
360-370 (Lovell, Lakewood, Freedman, FW/PBS, Thomas v. Chicago Park District, Poulos, Kingsley Books, Near)
232-236 (Davis, Hague v. CIO, Saia, Staub, Hynes, Lakewood, Cox)
64-66 (Kunz, Forsyth County)

18. Speech in Public Forums and other Government Property
236-253 (Schneider, Martin, Kovacs, City of Ladue, Watchtower Bible & Tract Society, Cox, Heffron, Metromedia, Vincent)

19. 253-267 (Clark, Ward, Frisby, Madsen, Schenck, Hill, Grace)
        
20. Speaker Access to Public Places Other than Streets and Parks
267-279 (Brown, Adderly, Grayned, Lehman, Southeastern Promotions, Greer, Albertini, U.S. Postal Service, Perry)
        
21. 279-292 (Cornelius, Kokinda, ISKCON v. Lee, Lee v. ISKCON, Forbes, United States v. American Library Association)
Pleasant Grove City v. Summum

22. Special Assignment for Thursday April 19:

Read Selected Parts of the Briefs in the Case of United States v. Alvarez:

For each brief read the Question Presented, the Argument Headings in the Table of Contents, the Statement, and the Summary of Argument.

Brief of the United States

Brief for Xavier Alvarez
  
Oral Argument - Alvarez - Petitioner's Argument Excerpt

Oral Argument - Alvarez - Respondent's Argument Excerpt