The

Other ConstitutionsHighlights of State Constitutional Law

Tuesdays, 12:10-1:30 PM

Week One (January 21): Welcome

Part IFederalism and Dual Sovereignty

Week Two (January 28): Introduction (Part 1)

William J. Brennan, Jr., State Constitutions and the Protection of Individual Rights,
90 Harv. L. Rev. 489 (1977).

Week Three (February 4): Introduction (Part 2)
Paul W. Kahn, Interpretation and Authority in State Constitutionalism, 106 Harv. L.
Rev. 1147 (1993).
Randall T. Shepard, The Maturing Nature of State Constitution Jurisprudence, 30
Val. U. L. Rev. 421 (1996).
Alden v. Maine, 527 U.S. 706 (1999)
Heath v. Alabama, 474 U.S. 82 (1985)

Week Four (February 11): Takings Clause
Ilya Somin, The Political Battle Over Eminent Domain Reform in Virginia, The
Volokh Conspiracy (November 26, 2011), available at:
http://www.volokh.com/2011/11/26/the-political-battle-over-eminent-domain-
reform-in-virginia/
Ilya Somin, Thoughts on the Virginia Eminent Domain Reform Referendum
Question, The Volokh Conspiracy (October 16, 2012), available at:
http://www.volokh.com/2012/10/16/thoughts-on-the-virginias-eminent-domain-
reform-referendum-question/

Week Five (February 18): Search and Seizure
State v. Johnson, 68 N.J. 349, 353-54, 346 A.2d 66, 68 (1975) holding modified by
State v. Carty, 170 N.J. 632, 790 A.2d 903 (2002)
People v. Brisendine, 13 Cal. 3d 528, 531 P.2d 1099 (1975)

Part IIState Constitutional Structure

Week Six (February 25): Organization of State Governments
Judith L. Maute, Selecting Justice in State Courts: The Ballot Box or the Backroom?,
41 S. Tex. L. Rev. 1197 (2000), Section II.
State by Shriver ex rel. Higgins v. Dunn, 496 S.W.2d 480 (Tenn. 1973)

Week Seven (March 4): Amendment and Revision of State Constitutions

Anne Permaloff, Methods of Altering State Constitutions, 33 Cumb. L. Rev. 217
(2003) (skim only)
Hollingsworth v. Perry, 570 U.S. ___ (2013)
The Perils of Direct Democracy: The California Experience by
California Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald George, p. 927-931 in Sutton
casebook (skim only)

Part IIIResidual Sovereignty and Special Protections

Week Eight (March 11): Privacy and Family Law

Hill v. NCAA, 865 P.2d 633 (Cal. 1994)
United States v. Windsor, 33 S.Ct. 2675 (2013)

Week Nine (March 25): Economic Rights
Helen Hershkoff, Just Words: Common Law and the Enforcement of State
Constitutional Social and Economic Rights, 62 Stan. L. Rev. 6 (2010)

Week Ten (April 1): Taxpayer Rights
Joshua G. Urquhart, Disfavored Constitution, Passive Virtues? Linking State
Constitutional Fiscal Limitations and Permissive Taxpayer Standing Doctrines, 81
Fordham L. Rev. 1263 (2012)

Part IVInterpretative Methods and Difficulties

Week Eleven (April 8): Disagreements Over Identical Language

State v. Hempele, 576 A.2d 793 (N.J. 1990)
Blum v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, 626 A.2d 537 (Pa. 1993)

Week Twelve (April 15): Originalism and Its Effect on Later Constitutions
Mitchell v. State, 818 P.2d 1163 (1991)
Davis v. Municipality of Anchorage, 945 P.2d 307 (AK. 1997)
Michael Schwaiger, Understanding the Unoriginal: Indeterminant
Originalism and Independent Interpretation of the Alaska Constitution, 22 Alaska
L. Rev. 293 (2005), Section III

Week Thirteen (April 22): Resistance to the Application of State Law
Ohio v. Robinette, 519 U.S. 33 (1996) (skim Ohio Supreme Court opinion, as well)