MBE

CONSTITUTIONAL LAW
WORKSHOP

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 Constitutional Law
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CONSTITUTIONAL LAW QUESTIONS
Question 1
By state law, no movie theater may admit
anyone under age 18 to ay movie classified as
“adult” by the state ratings board. In response to
a survey on the effect of adult entertainment on
people under age 21, the legislature proposed to
amend the statute to prohibit admission of any
male under age 20 and any female under age
19 to any theater playing adult-rated movies. A
theater owner operates a theater showing only
adult-rated movies. Because it is located next
to a college campus, he stands to lose nearly
half his patronage if this statute is enacted. The
theater owner brought an action in federal court
to restrain its enactment, arguing that it would
amount to unconstitutional sex discrimination.
What should the court do?
(A) Dismiss the action for want of a case or
controversy.
(B) Dismiss the action, because it does not
present a substantial federal question.
(C) Abstain from hearing the case, pending an
authoritative construction of the proposed
statute by a state court.
(D) Hear the case on its merits, because the
proposed statute would deny males the
equal protection of the law.
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CONSTITUTIONAL LAW WORKSHOP 3.
Question 2
A hairdresser owned a beauty salon
employing only male hairdressers and catering
only to female customers. A city ordinance
made it unlawful for any person to operate a
female beauty salon if the hairdressers are male.
The hairdresser brought an action in federal
court challenging the constitutionality of the
ordinance.
If the city moves to dismiss the lawsuit on the
basis that the hairdresser lacks standing, will the
city prevail?
(A) Yes, because the ordinance does not pro-
hibit the operation of beauty salons per se,
but only the right of the male employees to
service female customers.
(B) Yes, because only the employees can raise
their rights of association.
(C) No, because the employees and beauty
salon operators have rights that are harmed
by the ordinance.
(D) No, because the ordinance prevents the
employees from exercising their First
Amendment rights.
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 4. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW QUESTIONS
Question 3
Congress passed a statute requiring
energy consumption be reduced by a speci-
fied percentage, to be set by a presidential
executive order. The statute provided specific
standards that the President must use in setting
the percentage, and detailed procedures to be
followed.
Is this statute likely constitutional?
(A) Yes, because it creates a limited adminis-
trative power to implement the statute.
(B) Yes, because inherent executive powers
permit such action even without statutory
authorization.
(C) No, because it is an undue delegation of
legislative power to the executive branch.
(D) No, because it violates the Due Process
Clause of the Fifth Amendment.
MPQ 202 workshop constitutional law S.indd 4
Question 4
A massive earthquake struck Mexico, causing
widespread death and destruction. The President
of Mexico made an urgent plea to the Presi-
dent of the United States asking for assistance.
Congress was not in session and the President,
without calling Congress into special session,
ordered extensive military aid, in the form of
personnel and equipment, to assist Mexico.
Which of the following best describes the
constitutionality of the President’s orders?
(A) The action was a valid exercise of the Pres-
ident’s position as Commander in Chief of
the Armed Forces of the United States.
(B) The action was valid under the plenary
powers of the President, inasmuch as the
Army units were used for humanitarian,
rather than warlike, purposes.
(C) The action was unconstitutional, because
the President may not perform acts when
Congress is not in session that he would
have to ask Congress to approve if it were
in session.
(D) The action was unconstitutional, because
the President does not have the power to
unilaterally authorize this type of foreign
aid.
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 CONSTITUTIONAL LAW WORKSHOP 5.

Question 5 Question 6

A lunarian society believed that intelligent life
existed on the moon, but that the government
was not interested in searching for it. A wealthy
political contributor who was a member of this
society successfully lobbied Congress to pass a
$100 million bill to investigate this hypothesis,
even though virtually all reputable scientists
rejected it. The President vetoed the bill, calling
it a waste of money, but Congress overrode the
veto, and the appropriation was authorized.
Congress enacted a statute requiring colleges
and universities receiving federal funds to offer
aid to students solely on the basis of need.
Which of the following is the strongest consti-
tutional argument in favor of enacting such a
statute?
(A) Power to tax and spend for the general
welfare.

If the constitutional validity of the expenditure
is challenged in federal court, is the court likely
to find it valid?
(A) Yes, because the spending power of Con-
gress is limited only by the political pro-
cess.
(B) Power to enforce the Privileges or Immuni-
ties Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
(C) Power to enforce the Equal Protection
Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
(D) Police power.

(B) Yes, because Congress could believe that

the expenditure is a reasonable measure to
advance the general welfare.

(C) No, because the expenditure is inconsistent

with the exclusive authority of the President
over foreign affairs.

(D) No, because the spending does not directly

affect interstate or foreign commerce.

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 6. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW QUESTIONS
Question 7
To combat the spread of a dangerous and
highly contagious disease, the state passed
legislation authorizing testing clinics be set up
in major cities. One of the cities, with a popula-
tion of 25,000 people, had an army base in the
city employing 2,500 people and housing 5,000
soldiers. The mayor and the state director of
public health determined that the best location
for the clinic would be on the base, because
that is where the disease had the greatest risk
of spreading. When the proposal was made to
the base commander he refused to allow it, even
though there was ample space available.
Can the state compel the base commander to
allow the testing clinic on base?
(A) Yes, because the concentration of service
personnel and civilian base employees
in one location poses a significant health
threat to the citizens of the state if they are
not tested.
(B) Yes, because the area of public health has
not been preempted by the federal govern-
ment.
(C) No, because the state has no right under its
police power to impose this burden on the
federal government.
(D) No, because the state could easily construct
the clinic elsewhere.
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Question 8
A state law required that state civil service
employees retire by age 65. Congress then
passed a law making it illegal for states to
require anyone to retire prior to age 70, absent
valid physical or mental reasons why the job had
to be performed by younger persons.
A long-time state employee in excellent
physical and mental health who just turned 65
was told by his supervisor that he must retire. He
filed suit against an appropriate state official in
federal court, challenging the state law.
As a matter of constitutional law, how is the
court most likely to rule?
(A) The employee must retire, because the
federal statute interferes with an integral
governmental function of the state.
(B) The employee must retire, because the
state is merely trying to promote efficient
government at a lower cost to its taxpaying
citizens.
(C) The employee must be reinstated, because
federal law is supreme and voids inconsis-
tent state laws.
(D) The employee must be reinstated, because
age is a suspect classification.
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Question 9
After a private plane crashed near the Lincoln
Memorial, Congress enacted a law prohibiting
private planes from flying over Washington, D.C.
An organization representing private plane pilots
brought suit in federal court seeking to invali-
date this law.
What is the most obvious constitutional basis
to support the federal statute?
(A) The Supremacy Clause.
(B) The General Welfare Clause.
(C) Congress’s plenary power to make regula-
tions protecting government policy.
(D) Congress’s police power over the District of
Columbia.
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CONSTITUTIONAL LAW WORKSHOP 7.
Question 10
Eighty-five percent of tobacco products sold
in the United States originate in the tobacco
fields of one state. Its legislature passed a law
prohibiting cultivation of tobacco in the state,
citing severe health risk concerns. In response,
Congress enacted legislation specifically autho-
rizing and encouraging cultivation of tobacco by
providing tax incentives and federal subsidies for
tobacco growers.
If a tobacco grower and state resident is prose-
cuted under the state statute, will the federal law
compel the state court to dismiss the action?
(A) Yes, because the commerce power autho-
rizes Congress to regulate activities of
national economic significance and the
state statute is inconsistent with the federal
legislation.
(B) Yes, because the General Welfare Clause
empowers Congress to enact legislation it
believes to be beneficial to the people of the
United States, making the inconsistent state
statute invalid.
(C) No, because the power to regulate to
promote the general welfare is reserved to
the states by the Tenth Amendment.
(D) No, because the state has a compelling
interest in protecting the health of its
residents.
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 8. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW QUESTIONS
Question 11
The President issued an executive order
prohibiting exportation to certain countries of
specific computer software that, although not
usable directly to develop nuclear weapons,
would facilitate nuclear weapons technology.
Congress had previously passed a law autho-
rizing the issuance of such orders. Prior to the
issuance of the executive order, a computer
software company contracted with one of those
countries for software that is now banned for
sale and distribution.
What effect does the executive order have on
this contract?
(A) The executive order unconstitutionally
impairs the obligation of the company’s
preexisting contract, which was lawful
when made.
(B) The executive order unconstitutionally
denies the company a valuable property
interest without due process, because it
is not limited to computer software used
directly to produce nuclear weapons and,
therefore, is not necessary to vindicate a
compelling national need.
(C) The executive order is constitutional
because Congress has plenary powers to
regulate commerce with foreign nations
and has used that power to authorize such
orders.
(D) The executive order is constitutional,
because the inherent power of the President
to conduct foreign affairs is plenary.
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Question 12
The state capitol building had fallen into
disrepair, so the state contracted with a company
for remodeling. After the contract was signed
but before remodeling work had started, the
state repealed the statute authorizing money for
remodeling and notified the company that it was
cancelling the contract because of budgetary
concerns.
If the company brings suit in federal court
against an appropriate state official to enjoin
cancellation of the contract, for which party
should the court rule?
(A) For the company, because it had a valid
contract.
(B) For the company, if it has detrimentally
relied on its contract with the state.
(C) For the state official, because the courts
will not substitute their judgment for that of
the legislature.
(D) For the state official, because constitution-
ally the sovereign is not liable except with
its own consent.
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Question 13
To crack down on illegal immigration,
Congress passed a law giving a federal agency
the power to make rules to reduce crime related
to illegal immigration. The agency passed a
rule requiring state police officers to verify the
identity of anyone who is arrested, determine
whether they are legally in the country, and if
proper documentation cannot be verified, detain
them while alerting federal authorities, who will
either deport or clear them.
The governor of a state held a press confer-
ence announcing that the state will not comply
with this rule. Over the next several months,
federal officials received no notifications from
the state.
If the federal government files an action in
federal court to force the state to comply with
the rule, will the federal government prevail?
(A) No, because the Tenth Amendment pre-
vents the federal government from requir-
ing state officers to act.
(B) No, because the Equal Protection Clause
prevents the federal government from
discriminating based on alienage.
(C) Yes, because federal agency regulations
supersede state laws under the Supremacy
Clause.
(D) Yes, because the federal mandate is not tied
to the appropriation of any money to the
states.
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CONSTITUTIONAL LAW WORKSHOP 9.
Question 14
State A passed a law requiring at least 30% of
energy produced in State A to be from sustain-
able sources such as wind or solar. To help
achieve this, State A created an agency to build
wind farms and sell the energy to consumers.
Some of the wind farms were located near
State A’s border with State B. Although there
is a shortage of available electricity in the area
of State B that borders State A, the State A
agency decided that it would not sell electricity
to consumers in State B unless State B also
adopted a law requiring at least 30% of State
B energy to be produced from sustainable
sources. To date, State B has not adopted such
a law. State B consumers who wish to purchase
electricity from State A brought an action
against the state in an appropriate State A court,
claiming State A’s refusal to sell them electricity
violates the Commerce Clause.
Assume there are no relevant federal statutes.
Are the State B consumers likely to prevail?
(A) Yes, because State A is discriminating
against out-of-state residents.
(B) Yes, because State A’s decision is not neces-
sary to protect an important state interest.
(C) No, because State A has a compelling
interest in protecting the environment.
(D) No, because State A is acting as a market
participant.
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 10. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW QUESTIONS
Question 15
The state legislature, alarmed by the 50%
rise in the divorce rate of its citizens in recent
years, enacted legislation requiring applicants
for marriage licenses to be interviewed by a
state psychologist to determine compatibility
and evaluate their likelihood of success in a
marriage. An engaged couple had their applica-
tion for a marriage license denied after the state
psychologist who interviewed them decided that
they had an 80% chance of divorce within five
years.
If they bring an action challenging the consti-
tutionality of the statute, on what basis will they
prevail?
(A) If they can prove that the state statute is
not rationally related to a legitimate state
interest.
(B) If the state fails to prove that its statute
is rationally related to a legitimate state
interest.
(C) If they can prove that the state statute is not
necessary to effectuate a compelling state
interest.
(D) If the state fails to prove that the statute is
necessary to effectuate a compelling state
interest.
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Question 16
A United States senator made a speech on the
Senate floor asserting that the President has a
swastika tattoo in a location usually covered by
clothing. The assertion is demonstrably false,
and the senator knew that it was either false or
very unlikely to be true. The President has sued
the senator for defamation.
Which of the following is the best reason for
the court to dismiss the complaint?
(A) The President’s tattoos are not a matter of
public concern.
(B) The statement was not made with actual
malice.
(C) The complaint presents a nonjusticiable
political question.
(D) The statement was made by a senator on the
Senate floor.
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Question 17
A state retirement system deducts a fixed
percentage of an employee’s pay each payday.
Retirement benefits are paid at age 65 for the
life of the employee. Statistics reveal that the
life expectancy of a male at age 65 is less than
the life expectancy of a female at the same age.
Therefore, to balance out the benefits, males
receive a higher monthly retirement payment
than females.
If a female employee challenges the consti-
tutionality of the retirement system, what is the
applicable standard of review?
(A) The employee should be required to dem-
onstrate that the benefit standards are not
rationally related to the public interest.
(B) The state should be required to demonstrate
a compelling state need for the benefit
standards.
(C) The state should be required to show that
the classification is substantially related to
the achievement of important government
objectives.
(D) The state should be required to show a
rational purpose for the benefit standard.
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CONSTITUTIONAL LAW WORKSHOP 11.
Question 18
A state law provided that only citizens of the
United States may be hired by any governmental
unit within the state. A citizen of the Philippines,
who had been a legal resident of the state for five
years, was awarded a medical degree from the
state university and was licensed by the state to
practice medicine. The doctor applied for a job
opening in the state government, but despite the
fact that she was fully qualified, she was rejected
solely because of the statute.
If she files suit in federal court to enjoin
enforcement of the statute, what is her best
constitutional argument?
(A) The Ex Post Facto Clause.
(B) The Equal Protection Clause of the
Fourteenth Amendment.
(C) The Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth
Amendment.
(D) The Privileges or Immunities Clause of the
Fourteenth Amendment.
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 12. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW QUESTIONS
Question 19
Congress enacted a statute making it illegal
to sell reading glasses without a prescrip-
tion. The statute provided that any business
violating the statute after it becomes effective
is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by
the imposition of a $300 fine and the loss of
its business license. A drugstore owner had
maintained a large rack of nonprescription
reading glasses for years. He was able to offer
high quality nonprescription glasses to his
customers at low prices because five years ago
he entered into a very advantageous 10-year
contract with a leading supplier of nonpre-
scription eyeglasses. The owner’s drugstore
was one of the first to be inspected after the
new statute took effect. Two weeks after
the inspection, the owner received a letter
informing him that his business license had
been revoked because he was found to have
been selling nonprescription reading glasses
in violation of the new statute. The letter was
the first time the owner had ever heard of the
statute.
Which of the following constitutional
clauses provides the owner with his best
defense to the revocation of his business
license?
(A) The Privileges and Immunities Clause of
Article IV.
(B) The Contract Clause.
(C) The Due Process Clause.
(D) The Equal Protection Clause.
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Question 20
A defendant stood accused of murdering
a family of six in a small town. The judge,
concerned not only about prejudice to the defen-
dant’s right to a fair trial but also about media
attention and public opinion in such a small
locale, issued an order forbidding the press from
attending the trial or publishing any details of
the testimony at trial.
If a local newspaper sues in federal court to
have the judge’s gag order overturned, will the
newspaper prevail?
(A) Yes, because the proper way to deal with
prejudicial publicity is via a change of
venue.
(B) Yes, because the newspaper has a Sixth
Amendment right to a public trial.
(C) Yes, because the judge has attempted to
impose a prior restraint in violation of the
First Amendment.
(D) No, because the judge honestly believed
that publicity would be prejudicial and
would impair the defendant’s constitutional
right to a fair trial.
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 CONSTITUTIONAL LAW WORKSHOP 13.

Question 21 Question 22

To prevent automobile accidents, a state Due to violence erupting against picketers

adopted a statute limiting the use of electronic
billboards that periodically change messages.
The statute prohibits use of such billboards on
any street within the state with a speed limit of
40 miles per hour or above. A national billboard
company owns more than 200 billboards within
the state that will be affected by the statute. Each
of the billboards carries three to four adver-
tisements that change every two minutes. The
billboard company has contracts with various
advertisers for each of the billboards ranging in
length from 30 days to one year. If the statute is
enforced against the billboard company, it will
be able to carry only one advertisement on each
electronic billboard. As a result, it will have to
cancel contracts with some advertisers and will
experience a reduction in income.
In a previous suit involving the company, the
United States Supreme Court decided that all
of the advertisements shown on the company’s
billboards involve lawful activities and none is
misleading. Moreover, the Supreme Court has
found that preventing automobile accidents is an
important state interest.
If the billboard company brings suit claiming
that the statute is unconstitutional as applied to
it, who will likely prevail?
advocating automatic deportation of foreign
persons accused of a crime, a state enacted a
law prohibiting all picketing “carried out for the
purpose of deterring others from exercising their
constitutional rights.”
The strongest constitutional defense that can
be asserted by those charged with violating this
statute is which of the following?
(A) The Fifth Amendment right to due process
of law, because the statute is so vague that
reasonable persons cannot ascertain its
scope.
(B) Equal protection of the laws, because
the statute does not prohibit picketing for
purposes other than those specified.
(C) First and Fourteenth Amendment rights of
free expression and assembly, because the
statute excessively restricts the marketplace
of ideas.
(D) Article IV privileges and immunities of
state citizenship, because picketing is a
fundamental right.

(A) The billboard company, because the bill-

boards advertise lawful activities and the
advertisements are not misleading.

(B) The billboard company, because the statute

substantially impairs existing contract
rights.

(C) The state, because the states may regulate

speech activities under the police power as
long as the regulation is not content based.

(D) The state, because the statute is content

neutral, is narrowly tailored to serve an
important government interest, and leaves
open alternative channels of communica-
tion.

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 14. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW QUESTIONS
Question 23
In an effort to keep all protest demonstrations
peaceful, legislation was enacted that imposed
fines and jail time on leaders of unruly demon-
strations. The law made it a crime to “aid, abet,
incite, urge, or encourage behavior that amounts
to a breach of the peace.”
A protester led a large group of picketers to
a plant allegedly involved in chemical warfare
research. He shouted to his followers, “Let’s
show these murderers what we think of them!
Let’s stop the poison gas machine now!” A
student at the local university, carried away
with emotion, picked up a brick and heaved it
through one of the plant’s windows. The student
was arrested for, charged with, and convicted
of disturbing the peace, and is now challenging
his conviction on constitutional grounds. The
protester leading the event also was arrested,
charged with, and convicted of violating the
statute.
If the protester challenges his conviction in
federal court, what is his best argument?
(A) The protester is not vicariously liable for
the student’s activities.
(B) The student has raised a constitutional
challenge to his own conviction for
disturbing the peace.
(C) The statute is unconstitutionally vague.
(D) The First and Fourteenth Amendments
preclude a state from restricting political
protest speech.
MPQ 202 workshop constitutional law S.indd 14
Question 24
A controversial religious group had several
long-standing disputes with local politicians.
An inspection of its church building by the
county fire marshal determined that it failed to
meet code because of insufficient fire exits, and
proceedings were initiated to revoke the church’s
certificate of occupancy. The group requested
that the county make an exemption from the
building code, asserting that it could not afford
to make the necessary changes to make the
building conform to the code, and that closing
the building would hinder their ability to congre-
gate and worship.
If the group’s request is denied and the group
seeks to enjoin the county from enforcing the
building code on constitutional grounds, which
party is likely to prevail?
(A) The church on the basis of equal protec-
tion.
(B) The church, on the basis of freedom of
religion.
(C) The county, because an exemption for the
church would constitute an establishment of
religion.
(D) The county, because the regulation was not
intended to close the church.
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 CONSTITUTIONAL LAW WORKSHOP 15.

Question 25

As part of legislation enacted for the stated

purpose of improving computer literacy of
schoolchildren, Congress appropriated funds
to permit public school teachers who had been
certified by state school districts as remedial
computer instructors to provide supplemental
computer instruction to any students in either
public or private schools who did not have access
to computer resources. To help insure content
neutrality, the statute required the instructors
coming to the private schools to use the laptop
computers supplied by the public school districts,
which contained the programs that the instruc-
tors used for the same purpose in the public
schools.

If most of the private schools covered by the

statute are religiously affiliated schools, is the
statute constitutional?

(A) Yes, because the legislation is narrowly

tailored to promote a compelling govern-
ment interest.

(B) Yes, because the legislation defines

the context in which instruction can be
provided in private schools so as to avoid
excessive government entanglement with
religion.

(C) No, because the appropriation’s primary

effect advances religion in violation of the
Establishment Clause of the First Amend-
ment.

(D) No, because the court will presume that any

instruction provided on the premises of a
religiously affiliated school will be influ-
enced by religion.

STOP

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