Article II of the United States Constitution creates the framework for the Executive Branch. Section 1 states the qualifications for the president – must be a natural-born citizen, 35 years of age, and have been a resident of the U.S. for at least fourteen years – while Section 4 states that “the President, Vice President […]
Next question in the series “Things You Should Know According to Your Neighborhood Lawyer – Constitution Edition” Question 5: How could Jeannette Rankin have served in Congress before the Nineteenth Amendment (woman suffrage) was adopted? Answer: “The Constitution never prohibited women from voting or serving in public office, leaving that for the states to decide. […]
After I concluded my clerkship with Chief Justice Hasting of the Nebraska Supreme Court I moved to San Diego to begin working for a law firm. Within a month or two the executive director of Harmonium, Inc. (a non-profit company dedicated to helping at-risk children and adolescents) asked me to be on their board of […]
This past Monday and every January, we celebrate and remember the renowned leader, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and the ideals he stood for. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the other brave activists of the Civil Rights Movement achieved great heights that extended far beyond tearing down legalized racial discrimination. While there was (and […]
This past week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) “proposed a new rule that would prohibit employers from imposing noncompete agreements on their workers, a practice it called exploitative and widespread, affecting some 30 million American workers.” While this proposed rule is not official yet, the potential eradication of noncompete agreements creates room for widespread economic […]
Next question in the series “Things You Should Know According to Your Neighborhood Lawyer – Constitution Edition” Question 3: “Can the federal government regulate the business of a manufacturer that produces musical instruments only in California?” “Probably, since the materials used to produce the instruments and the finished products most likely cross state lines. The […]
“Under Article I, Section 5, each house of Congress can set its own rules of proceedings. The larger House, where membership reflects the population of each state, has set rules that limit how long members can speak and that reduce their opportunity to block legislation coming to a vote. The smaller Senate, where all states […]
“Yes. However, for many years state legislatures gave more representation to large, sparsely populated rural districts than to smaller, heavily populated urban districts. In Baker v. Carr (1962), the Supreme Court ruled that all legislative districts must be equal in population, on the grounds that qualified voters were no more or less so because they […]