Flast v. Cohen
United States Supreme Court
392 U.S. 83, 88 S.Ct. 1942, 20 L.Ed.2d 947 (1968)
Facts
Flast and six other federal taxpayers (plaintiffs) brought suit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York to enjoin Cohen and other federal officers tasked with administering federal funds (defendants) from spending those funds under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. The taxpayers brought suit solely based on their status as federal taxpayers, alleging that Congress’s spending of federal funds on instruction and materials in religious schools violated the Free Exercise and Establishment Clauses of the United States Constitution. The lower court held that the taxpayers did not have standing as federal taxpayers. The United States Supreme Court granted certiorari.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Warren, C.J.)
Concurrence (Douglas, J.)
Concurrence (Stewart, J.)
Concurrence (Fortas, J.)
Dissent (Harlan, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 706,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 44,400 briefs, keyed to 983 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
