Legal Environment of Business Lecture 1 November 18 2015 The constitution is the oldest governmental charter in America 1 It was a radical concept when it was first introduced The US is a Representative Republic it is not a true democracy Under the Articles of Confederation laws had to be passed with a unanimous decision which wasn t the case most of the time nothing got done The constitution states that we consent to our leaders making decisions for us The constitution disperses power among many compared to a monarchy where power is held by only one All 3 branches have overlapping power and each can check the other 2 branches The constitution mandates communication between the people who have power Rule of Law Once a court makes a decision that decision must be respected and honored Ex When gay marriage passed everyone must respect and honor that or suffer the consequences One issue with the Articles of Confederation was it never established a strong centralized The constitution sets up a team approach to government and the court system are the Under pre emption doctrine states that laws pass by congress supercede all local and state government gaurdians of the constitution laws Supremecy Laws The first 10 amendments known as the Bill of Rights was the first time in the history of the world where individual rights are established that a government cannot take away Police Power Local government or state government can make laws pertaining to that locality Ex Medical Marijuana Full Faith in Credit Clause A judicial determination in one state must be respected by another state Ex Ohio has arrest warrant for criminal in Pennsylvania Pennsylvania must honor this Ex A mother in Ohio seeks child support from a man in California Judge in Ohio rules in her favor California must respect and honor the decision and enforce it States cannot discriminate against out of state businesses because of priveledges and immunities clause which also has applications to public accomodations you can t turn away someone because they are from another state or country or race etc Concept of Ex Post Facto Prohibition against legislatures trying to change laws retroactively Ex Regulation of something that has already happened Retroactive laws make something illegal that wasn t illegal previously and for some time before the law was passed you could be held accountable The constitution does not allow these kinds of laws Equal Protection Amendment 14th Requires that our laws treat us the same unless there is a rational reason for treating us differently Ex You make 100 000 dollars a year You pay more in taxes than someone who only makes 10 000 in a year Ex 12 yr olds cannot drive 16 yr olds can drive with restrictions 18 yr olds can drive with less restriction The constitution seperates church from state establishment clause There is no state or nationally endorsed religion There is a requirement of neutrality when it comes to religion The government cannot pass laws that seriously impact someone from practicing their religion Freedom of Press and Speech encompasses any form of communication and these rights are absolute you cannot communicate lies The 1st amendment doesn t protect against obscenities which is any form of communication that doesn t have any artistic scientific basis and has purian aspects The 1st amendment doesn t protect against speech advocating the immediate overthrow of public authority
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