Struggling with Scalia??

Given the fact that I have asthma, and there is what used to be a small amount of black mold growing in my spare bedroom after the "great flood" that resulted from 40 days and 40 nights of rain (from a leaking water heater), and I haven't been able to light a fire under the ass of my landlord to get over and take care of it . . .

I woke up this morning unable to breathe.

So I thought I would use the time to read a little more of these two new blawgs I mentioned in my last post. And discovered both have something in common . . .

Like most law students, they hate ConLaw. I, on the other hand, am a freak and I loved it. And so I spent endless hours contemplating the fine minutiae of various Supreme Court decisions.

And then I reduced it to flow-chart form.

So for the sake of my 1L friends struggling with ConLaw, I am posting my two favorite flow charts in the entire world. I do not warrant the accuracy of either chart, or guarantee that either will help you get a good grade. But I did fairly well, and I think it is easier than reading all of the cases over again . . .

Of course, before you can get any further on any ConLaw question you first have to look to see if the case is actually justiciable. Some profs love this aspect of the law more than others. But remember: ConLaw Profs and Supreme Court justices were law students once too, and they too will sometimes look to do nothing more than is absolutely necessary.

The Court loves to confuse hapless law students by calling the same tests by different names, but in reality nearly all tests can be broken down into 3 general categories for guidance (with some carrying an additional caveat or two).

Feel free to print these out and use them as you see fit. However, do make sure that if they are helpful you give credit where credit is due. If they actually cause you to fail miserably, to then drop out of law school and to end up with a job at Chuckee Cheese's . . . then you don't have to thank me.

If you find these hard to read (I had to shrink the file for posting), e-mail me using the address in my profile or catch me on AIM at "MiMonAiM" and I will send you a better copy.

Good Luck!


ADDENDUM: While I just increased the size of the .jpg files, you will probably still have a problem with their clarity. Unfortunately, I don't know how to host files on my blog. And don't have the time to learn. So if you want the files in MS Word format, please feel free to IM me or e-mail me. Like everyone else, I will be glued to my computer for the next two weeks.

If I'd have known this would be so popular, I would've posted my "Battle of the Forms" flow chart for Contract Law last semester. But if you'd like that now, let me know and you can have that too.

If I can ever figure out how to host files, maybe I'll post my outlines. Its not like they are doing me any good now so they ought to be helping someone.