Deck 1: The American Legal System: the Source of Environmental Law

Question 1

Public laws

A) are generally administered by administrative agencies.
B) usually regulate classes of people or organizations.
C) regulate the conduct between two individual parties.
D) both a and b.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Due process

A) may be either substantive or procedural.
B) is guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment.
C) both a and b.
D) none of the above.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

From environmentalists' perspective, one of the most important Constitutional rights is the right to a clean environment.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

If you were looking for a federal statute, you would look in the Federal Reporter.

Question 5

Bills that are passed by the United States Congress and then signed by the United States President become statutes, which can be found in the U. S. Code; the National Environmental Policy Act is an example of such a federal statute.

Question 6

The burden of proof in a civil case is a preponderance of evidence, whereas the burden of proof in a criminal case is beyond a reasonable doubt.

Question 7

The Fourth Amendment

A) prohibits searches by a government agency without the agency's first obtaining a warrant.
B) is today offering greater protection than it did a few years ago.
C) both a and b.
D) none of the above.
Answers to critical thinking questions regarding "The Contradictory Behavior of the EPA."

Question 8

The Takings Clause

A) is part of the Fifth Amendment.
B) prevents the government from taking private property for public use without just compensation.
C) both a and b.
D) none of the above.

Question 9

Which of the following is one of the elements that the EPA believes is necessary for a successful environmental auditing?

A) an environmental auditing function that is independent of audited activities.
B) adequate auditor training and staffing.
C) both a and b.
D) none of the above.

Question 10

Signing statements have been used to dilute or effect the enforcement of laws passed by Congress.

Question 11

The president makes law by signing treaties.

Question 12

In general, a state may pass an environmental regulation that sets standards more stringent than those set by federal regulations.

Question 13

The appearance of unequal environmental protection

A) comes, to a large extent, from the fact that fines for violating environmental laws were historically lower, on average, in minority neighborhoods.
B) is explained by the EPA as being the result of significant budget cuts.
C) both a and b.
D) none of the above.

Question 14

In a civil case, an individual who has been harmed by the defendant is seeking to have the defendant punished by a fine or imprisonment.

Question 15

Because of the doctrine of federal supremacy,

A) no state may impose a regulation if there is an existing federal law to cover the problem.
B) no state law may impose a stricter standard than a federal law.
C) state statutes may impose standards that are stricter than federal laws unless the federal law is in an area where Congress wants there to be no state regulation.
D) both a and b.

Question 16

The court has traditionally interpreted the Commerce Clause broadly, so that most environmental regulations are considered a valid exercise of Commerce Clause authority.

Question 17

A lawyer who wants to get a decision contrary to the decision in the case that appears to establish the precedent:

A) can win by getting the judge to distinguish the case on the facts from the precedent.
B) can win by getting an appellate panel of judges to overturn the precedent.
C) either a or b.
D) none of the above.

Question 18

The source of authority for most federal environmental laws is

A) the Commerce Clause.
B) the Contract Clause.
C) the Fifth Amendment.
D) Article III.

Question 19

Criminal law

A) is statutory law.
B) places the burden of proof on the prosecutor.
C) both a and b.
D) none of the above.

Question 20

If a bill that has been passed by the House and Senate is not signed by the president, then it cannot become law.