Procedural Due Process - Next Generation Bar Exam
- A state employee who serves at will is fired without a hearing. On what ground was no process due?
- At-will employment creates no property interest in continued employment. Without a legitimate claim of entitlement, there is no deprivation of property.
- Under Parratt v. Taylor and Hudson v. Palmer, what satisfies due process for a random, unauthorized deprivation of property by a state employee?
- An adequate post-deprivation remedy. Pre-deprivation process is impossible when the state cannot foresee the unauthorized act.
- Under Daniels v. Williams, what is the status of a government official's negligent act causing a loss of liberty or property?
- It is not a deprivation under the Due Process Clause. Due process is not implicated by a lack of due care.
- Under Board of Regents v. Roth, what creates a protected property interest?
- A legitimate claim of entitlement grounded in an independent source such as state law. A unilateral expectation of a benefit is not enough.
- Under Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal, when does due process require a judge's recusal?
- When the probability of actual bias is too high to be constitutionally tolerable. Caperton involved a litigant's large campaign contributions to the judge's election.
- Under Mathews v. Eldridge, what three factors determine what process is due?
- The private interest, the risk of erroneous deprivation and the value of added safeguards, and the government's interest. The balance decides the timing and formality of the required hearing.
- Under Goss v. Lopez, what process is due before a short public school suspension?
- Informal notice of the charges and an opportunity to explain. A formal hearing is not required for a suspension of 10 days or less.
- Which interests does the procedural component of the Due Process Clause protect?
- Life, liberty, and property. Process is required only if the government deprives a person of one of these interests.
- Under Paul v. Davis, what does damage to reputation alone not constitute?
- A protected liberty interest. Stigma must be accompanied by the loss of a tangible interest, such as employment, to trigger due process.
- Under Goldberg v. Kelly, what process is required before terminating welfare benefits?
- An evidentiary hearing before termination. Recipients depend on the benefits for basic subsistence.
- Under Mathews v. Eldridge, what process is required before terminating Social Security disability benefits?
- A post-termination hearing suffices; a pre-termination evidentiary hearing is not required. Disability benefits are not based on financial need, and the medical determination is largely documentary.
- Under Cleveland Board of Education v. Loudermill, what process is due before firing a public employee who may be dismissed only for cause?
- Notice of the charges, an explanation of the evidence, and an opportunity to respond. A fuller post-termination hearing must follow.