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Original Intent In The First Congress, Louis J. Sirico Jr.
Original Intent In The First Congress, Louis J. Sirico Jr.
Working Paper Series
Most of the literature on this country’s Founding Era concludes that at least in the very early years, the Founders did not look to original intent to construe the Constitution. However, this study looks not at what the Founders said they believed, but how they acted. In the First Federal Congress, the members did use arguments based on original intent. This study identifies their originalist arguments and categorizes them into five rhetorical categories. It concludes that these arguments did not dominate the debates, but were one type of argument among many.
The Pragmatic Populism Of Justice Stevens' Free Speech Jurisprudence, Gregory P. Magarian
The Pragmatic Populism Of Justice Stevens' Free Speech Jurisprudence, Gregory P. Magarian
Working Paper Series
In his three decades on the Supreme Court, Justice John Paul Stevens has developed a distinctive approach to the First Amendment. During his tenure, the Court’s majority has crystallized a theory of First Amendment speech protection as an abstract, negative protection of individual autonomy against government interference. In contrast, Justice Stevens’ pragmatic judicial methodology has caused him to place greater emphasis on free speech decisions’ practical consequences, particularly their effectiveness in making democratic debate inclusive as to both participants and subject matter in order to ensure robust, well-informed public discourse. Alone on the present Court, Justice Stevens manifests a deep …
Religious Group Autonomy: Further Reflections About What Is At Stake, Kathleen A. Brady
Religious Group Autonomy: Further Reflections About What Is At Stake, Kathleen A. Brady
Working Paper Series
This article addresses the protections afforded by the First Amendment when government regulation interferes with the internal activities or affairs of religious groups. In previous pieces, I have argued that the First Amendment should be construed to provide religious groups a broad right of autonomy over all aspects of internal group operations, those that are clearly religious in nature as well as activities that seem essentially secular. In my view, such autonomy is necessary to preserve the ability of religious groups to generate, live out and communicate their own visions for social life, including ideas that can push the norms …
You’Re So Vain, I’Ll Bet You Think This Song Is About You, Joseph W. Dellapenna
You’Re So Vain, I’Ll Bet You Think This Song Is About You, Joseph W. Dellapenna
Working Paper Series
Dispelling the Myths of Abortion History covers over 1,000 years of abortion history in England and America, with special emphasis on the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. It presents an accurate and thoroughly fresh look at that history, reaching several unorthodox conclusions without taking sides on the merits of the abortion debate. The true history of abortion in England and America is important because Justice Harry Blackmun, drawing on the work of law professor Cyril Means, structured the argument of the majority in Roe v. Wade around the history of abortion laws. Means’ argument was later buttressed by the work of …
Considering Standing, Sincerity, And Antidiscrimination, Chapin C. Cody
Considering Standing, Sincerity, And Antidiscrimination, Chapin C. Cody
Working Paper Series
This Article will establish that an unrecognized norm, the “norm of sincerity,” is an implicit factor in the standing analysis in a certain class of equal protection cases. That class of cases includes equal protection claims where 1) courts have applied the “able and ready to compete” test to determine a plaintiff’s injury in fact, and where 2) the plaintiff has complained about discriminatory access to limited government resources. In those cases, a plaintiff cannot demonstrate injury in fact sufficient to meet Article III standing unless she shows that she sincerely intends to use the benefits at stake in the …