The City of Anytown is located in the State of Utopia. Utopia borders on the State of Dystopia. Anytown is eight miles from Dystopia's border. After an outbreak of E. Coli traced back to improperly processed chickens, the Anytown City Council passed an ordinance forbidding the sale, within Anytown, of any chickens not killed and processed at a processing center first inspected by the Anytown Department of Health ("Anytown Ordinance"). 

The minutes from the Anytown City Council meeting are consistent with the purpose of the ordinance being motivated solely by health and safety objectives, not by any desire to favor local producers. The Anytown Department of Health inspectors inspected all processing centers within a 50-mile radius of Anytown within Utopia, but did not inspect any processing plants in Dystopia. Dystopia, at the state level, inspects its own processing facilities with standards similar to Utopia's Anytown inspections. 

Additionally the State of Utopia decided to build a new and large warehouse-type chicken processing facility. Because the in-state chicken processing industry suffers due to high costs, Utopia's legislature passed a statute stating that all chickens processed in the new facility should be purchased from in-state chicken farmers, even though the price would be ultimately higher than if the chickens were bought from out of state. 

A.  John Johnston, owner of a Anytown Whole Foods Supermarket, sells chickens from a Dystopia processing facility. Johnston was charged with violating the Anytown Ordinance. John Johnston files a motion to dismiss in State Court, on the grounds that the Anytown Ordinance, as applied, violates the U.S. Constitution. 

1. Does John Johnston have standing to bring his law suit? 
2. What argument(s) can John Johnston make for the unconstitutionality of the Anytown Ordinance? 
3. Will the constitutional attack succeed? Why? 

B.  A chicken farmer from Dystopia sued Utopia, challenging his violation of the Utopia statute, in federal district court asserting that Utopia's preference for in-stater's violates the Commerce Clause. 

1. Will the court agree with the plaintiff's argument? Why or why not? 

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

A 1 Does John Johnston have standing to bring his law suit Yes Standing in legal terms means that a person must be sufficiently affected by the matter ... View the full answer