Page images
PDF
EPUB

FOREWORD

I am pleased to present this most recent edition of Court Proceedings and Actions of Vital Interest to the Congress, current to March 1, 1983. This is the sixth volume written by the House Committee on the Judiciary since the statutory responsibility for identifying such cases was assigned to the Committee by the Speaker of the House in May 1979. Our predecessors on this project, the Joint Committee on Congressional Operations and the Select Committee on Congressional Operations, neither of which remains in existence, published similar reports from 1971 through the end of 1978. As in previous editions of this report prepared by the Committee on the Judiciary, we have utilized a format which is designed to make the publication a useful resource not only for Members of Congress and Legislative branch employees, but also for those outside Congress with either a serious or passing interest in litigation involving the institution. For example, the report is organized topically so that a reader can easily locate cases on a variety of relevant subjects. Case summaries have also been included at the beginning of the report which highlight the most important-and relevant-principles of law involved in each proceeding and provide a ready reference to the issues, status, and location of each case. Of course, this latest volume once again contains numerous recent court decisions referred to in the text, reprinted in their entirety. The cases discussed in this report involve fundamental and often complex questions concerning the scope of Congressional power, the boundaries of permissible legislative activity, and the relationship between Congress, the Executive and the Judiciary. Given the importance of these issues, I believe this publication can make a valuable contribution to our understanding of our democratic system of government.

PETER W. RODINO, Jr., Chairman, House Committee on the Judiciary.

« PreviousContinue »