GOLDEN GATE UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF LAW
May 4, 2002

Directions:

1. Please read these directions and the examination carefully.

2. This is a closed book examination. No books, notes or outlines may be used.

3. The total time of the examination is three hours.

4. The examination consists of three essay questions.

5. Please write legibly; illegible material cannot be graded. Answer all questions in the blue books; please write on every other line and on only one side of the page.

6. If additional facts appear to be necessary in answering the questions, make alternative assumptions as to these facts and state your assumptions and why you think they are necessary.

7. Allocate your time sensibly; notice the point value for each question.

8. Be sure to write your examination number on all of your blue books and on the examination questions.

9. Turn in all questions, scratch paper and blue books at the conclusion of the examination.

I. (40 points)

The State of Maine is justly proud of its lobsters but is finding that each year the lobster catch is yielding fewer mature lobsters. Lobster experts say that if there were no trapping of lobsters for a period of five years, this would allow a complete recovery in the lobster population. The Maine Legislature formally requests the State's Federal Legislators to introduce Federal legislation to protect and conserve the State's lobster population.

One of the U.S. Representatives from Maine drafts the following legislation and asks her legal staff whether this legislation would be constitutional if passed by Congress. You are a member of the Representative's legal staff and have been given the task of advising the Representative. Here is the proposed legislation:

1. For a period of five years, no lobster from the State of Maine may be shipped out of the United States.

2. For a period of five years, no lobster, including those from Maine, may be sold in any market or served in any restaurant in the United States.

3. After the end of this five year period, a Federal tax of one dollar ($1.00) is to be assessed on each lobster sold or served in any market or restaurant in the United States.

4. A sum of $20,000,000 is appropriated to reimburse all Maine trappers of lobsters for income lost due to the moratorium on the trapping of lobsters.

5. An administrative agency, called the Agency of Lobster Affairs, is established. It will consist of three members, to be appointed by the Secretary of the Interior. Its role will be to compile information as to the size and health of the United States' lobster population and, if needed, recommend to Congress any legislation to conserve and protect this vital national resource.

Advise the Representative from Maine as to the likely constitutionality of each provision of this proposed legislation.

II. (40 points)

A. The City of Atlanta, Georgia passes a municipal ordinance which requires that any contract for services of professional personnel, who are not already city employees, must go to Atlanta residents, unless there is no Atlanta resident who applies for and is qualified for the contract position.

The City of Atlanta wants to gather information on the possible damage to the buildings in Atlanta, in the unlikely event of an earthquake. There is, at present, no city employee with the required qualifications, so the City puts out a notice for the hiring, on a contract basis, of an expert in this field. Both Peter Wilson and Henry Aaron apply for the position. Henry Aaron is a 2001 graduate of Georgia Tech and a resident of Atlanta. Henry Aaron is a Mechanical Engineer and, in his senior year, had taken a course entitled "Earthquakes and Safe Construction." Since graduation, Henry has been unemployed.

The contract specifications provided for by the City required that the person have a degree in Mechanical Engineering and have either practical experience in safe earthquake construction or an academic background in the same field.

The contract is awarded to Henry Aaron on the basis that Henry meets the contract qualifications and is a resident of Atlanta.

This ordinance is challenged by Peter Wilson, a resident of California who is a Mechanical Engineer specializing in structural damage due to earthquakes and how to prevent such damage by building specifications. He has twenty years of experience in this field and has been employed, on a contract basis, to advise the California Legislature of necessary changes to building codes after the Loma Prieta and Northridge earthquakes.

Discuss and decide the likely outcome of Peter Wilson's constitutional challenge.

B. In another City ordinance (totally unrelated to the above ordinance), Atlanta prohibits all trucks, with 8 or more wheels, from using the freeways in Atlanta, between the weekday hours of 6:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. The ordinance is passed due to the gridlock experience on Atlanta's freeways during the commute hours.

The constitutionality of this ordinance is challenged by Mack Truck, an Alabama trucking company owner. His company uses 18 wheel trucks to ship goods into Atlanta and to other destinations where use of the Atlanta freeways has been part of his previously used routes. Mack Truck states that limiting his use of the Atlanta freeways during the commute hours will cost him a bundle of money.

Discuss and decide the likely outcome of Mack Truck's suit.

III. (20 points)

Upon conviction, for the third time, of either child molestation or forcible rape, Nevada law provides for the compulsory administration of a drug which totally eliminates the sexual drive of the recipient. The administration of this drug will remove any sexual desire to molest a child or engage in forcible rape.

Assuming a proper litigant, discuss and decide the constitutionality of this law.