Current Issues in Constitutional Litigation: A Context and Practice Casebook

This casebook is designed to make it easier to implement the ideas in the Carnegie Foundation's Educating Lawyers (2007) and Best Practices for Legal Education (2007) by integrating the teaching of doctrine and skills and using multiple methods of instruction. Current Issues in Constitutional Litigation focuses on the constitutional and statutory doctrines necessary to litigate 4th, 8th, and 14th Amendment claims, and 1st Amendment religion claims that arise in prison. Every chapter places students in roles as practitioners handling simulated law practice problems; provides a doctrinal overview; includes exercises, visual aids, and questions to guide student reading; and includes materials that help students reflect on their professional roles. In addition to Supreme Court decisions, materials include differing circuit court applications of doctrine, jury instructions, oral arguments, briefs, expert reports, and other practical documents. The text provides factual context by including background about the work of prison guards, police, and social workers. Evelyn Tenenbaum, Albany Law School, contributed chapters on the 11th Amendment and 1st Amendment religion issues that arise in prison. The Teacher's Manual includes banks of multiple-choice and essay questions and answers and teaching guides for exercises and law practice simulations.