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Full-Text Articles in Constitutional Law
The Unconstitutionality Of Consolidated Planning Boards: Interlocal Planning Under New York Law, Albert J. Pirro Jr.
The Unconstitutionality Of Consolidated Planning Boards: Interlocal Planning Under New York Law, Albert J. Pirro Jr.
Pace Law Review
This Article will examine the nature and constitutionality of consolidated planning boards in light of the broad powers actually granted them. The issues surrounding the constitutionality of consolidated planning boards begs, yet again, Chief Justice Marshall's question respecting the extent of the power granted to the state governments. The question is whether a municipality may abdicate its power to regulate land within its own boundaries by delegating it to a separate planning entity.
New York Breaks Gideon’S Promise, Rebecca King
New York Breaks Gideon’S Promise, Rebecca King
Pace Law Review
In 1963, the Supreme Court of the United States held that criminal defendants have the constitutional right to counsel, regardless of whether they can afford one, in the famous case of Gideon v. Wainwright. However, statistics, as well as public defense attorneys, reveal that the Supreme Court’s decision has yet to be fulfilled. Part of the problem is due to the system of mass incarceration in the United States. In 2013, the Brennan Center for Justice reported that the prison population reached 2.3 million individuals, compared to the 217,000 inmates imprisoned when Gideon was decided. The American Bar Association estimates …
Report And Recommendations Concerning Environmental Aspects Of The New York State Constitution, New York State Bar Association Environmental And Energy Law Section
Report And Recommendations Concerning Environmental Aspects Of The New York State Constitution, New York State Bar Association Environmental And Energy Law Section
Pace Law Review
The purpose of the Report is to inform and enrich understanding of environmental issues which may be considered at a Constitutional Convention (should one occur) or with respect to proposals to amend the Constitution through the legislative process.
Updating New York’S Constitutional Environmental Rights, Nicholas A. Robinson
Updating New York’S Constitutional Environmental Rights, Nicholas A. Robinson
Pace Law Review
The stakes are high as New York State considers whether to amend the constitution. The electorate contemplates the gathering crises of sea level rise, disruption of weather patterns, intensified summer heat waves, and other climate change impacts. New York also faces escalating environmental problems, which the newly perceived climate impacts in turn exacerbate. It is timely to debate whether or not New York should recognize the right to the environment to its constitution. In 2016, the House of Delegates of the New York State Bar Association adopted the report of its committee on the constitution, regarding the environmental conservation article …
Subnational Environmental Constitutionalism And Reform In New York State, James R. May
Subnational Environmental Constitutionalism And Reform In New York State, James R. May
Pace Law Review
The State of New York’s constitution was perhaps the first in the world to embody environmental constitutionalism, most directly in what is known as its “Forever Wild” mandate from 1894. In contrast to many subnational environmental provisions, courts in New York have regularly enforced Forever Wild. New York’s Constitution also contains a remarkable mandate that every twenty years voters decide whether to hold elections for delegates to convene a convention to amend the state’s constitution, with the next such opportunity on November 7, 2017. This article explores how subnational constitutionalism from around the world informs discussions about whether and how …
Home Rule In New York: The Need For A Change, Michael A. Cardozo, Zachary W. Klinger
Home Rule In New York: The Need For A Change, Michael A. Cardozo, Zachary W. Klinger
Pace Law Review
This article is intended to provide a practical lens into how Home Rule issues unfold in complex matters involving the City, and to suggest how a much-needed Home Rule constitutional amendment could re-shape or, at the very least, clarify Home Rule standards. Section II will provide some historical and legal background on Home Rule; Section III will analyze some of the more well-known Home Rule cases that the Law Department litigated during the Bloomberg Administration; and Section IV will discuss insights gleaned with respect to, and will offer several recommendations for, the future of Home Rule in New York.
The Constitutional Convention And Court Merger In New York State, Jay C. Carlisle, Matthew J. Shock
The Constitutional Convention And Court Merger In New York State, Jay C. Carlisle, Matthew J. Shock
Pace Law Review
In November 2017, voters in New York, for the first time in twenty years, will be asked to decide whether there “[s]hall be a convention to revise the constitution and amend the same?” If it is decided by the electorate to call a convention, “delegates will be elected in November 2018, and the convention will convene in April 2019.” One of the significant goals of a convention would be the achievement of court merger in the Empire State. The purpose of this perspective is to discuss the pros and cons of a constitutional convention with an emphasis on court merger.
The Road To A Constitutional Convention: Reforming The New York State Unified Court System And Expanding Access To Civil Justice, Jonathan Lippman
The Road To A Constitutional Convention: Reforming The New York State Unified Court System And Expanding Access To Civil Justice, Jonathan Lippman
Pace Law Review
This article will focus on the judiciary reforms and access to justice—starting with reforms to the structure of the Unified Court System and discussing other ways that a constitutional convention might serve to improve the operation of the courts. The article will then explore the state’s deficiency in providing its low-income citizens access to justice in civil matters relating to housing, family safety and security, and subsistence income, and how a convention can highlight these issues.
Constitutionalizing Ethics, Bennett L. Gershman
Constitutionalizing Ethics, Bennett L. Gershman
Pace Law Review
The purpose of this essay is not to weigh in the wisdom or utility in revising New York’s Constitution. However, in my opinion, one of the most compelling reasons to amend New York’s Constitution is the need to incorporate into the fundamental charter a meaningful code of ethics, including procedures for its enforcement, and sanctions for violations. New York over the past fifteen years has experienced more scandals, criminal prosecutions, and convictions of lawmakers and other government officials for corruption than any state in the nation. It is certainly arguable that the extent of New York’s corruption, and the widespread …
Unusual “Politics As Usual”: The 2017 Ballot Proposition Calling For A Constitutional Convention In New York, Peter J. Galie
Unusual “Politics As Usual”: The 2017 Ballot Proposition Calling For A Constitutional Convention In New York, Peter J. Galie
Pace Law Review
The first task of constitutional reformers is to make the people of the state aware that they live under a constitution that, for better or worse, affects their everyday lives whether they live on in remotes sections of the Adirondacks routes in villages or a teeming megalopolis. Until this is done, the people are not likely to demand or even accept the more thoroughgoing revision so badly needed in New York.
The Amending Clause In The New York Constitution And Conventionphobia, Gerald Benjamin
The Amending Clause In The New York Constitution And Conventionphobia, Gerald Benjamin
Pace Law Review
The amending clause is the nineteenth of the New York State Constitution’s twenty articles. Followed only by the enacting clause, for all intents and purposes this is the document’s final word. Well, maybe not the final word. An alternative is to think of this amending clause as a part of an ongoing several-centuries-long conversation. The clause is a message from one past group of designers and drafters of New York’s governing system, the 1846 Constitutional Convention majority, to all of us who gave them the charge to “secure [for us] the blessings of freedom,” that is to “we the people” …
Hope Vs. Fear: The Debate Over A State Constitutional Convention, Henry M. Greenberg
Hope Vs. Fear: The Debate Over A State Constitutional Convention, Henry M. Greenberg
Pace Law Review
On November 7, 2017, New Yorkers will go to their polling places and receive ballots containing a thirteen-word referendum question: “Shall there be a convention to revise the constitution and amend the same?” That question appears on the ballot because the New York State Constitution commands that at least once every twenty years voters are asked whether or not to call a constitutional convention. The mandatory referendum reflects Thomas Jefferson’s belief that every generation the people should be given a chance to revise their basic law.
Mixing Law And Equity Causes Of Action Does Not Preclude A Jury Trial, Philip M. Halpern
Mixing Law And Equity Causes Of Action Does Not Preclude A Jury Trial, Philip M. Halpern
Pace Law Review
This article addresses the issue of the preclusion of jury trials in actions which contemplate both legal and equitable relief. Part II of this article addresses the constitutional and statutory history of New York Civil Practice Law and Rules (“CPLR”) Section 4101 concerning issues triable by a jury and the dichotomy between those actions triable by a jury and equitable actions triable by the court alone. Part III of this article addresses the interplay between CPLR Sections 4101 and 4102, concerning demand and waiver of trial by jury, and the analysis developed by the courts to determine whether a jury …
An Illusory Right To Appeal: Substantial Constitutional Questions At The New York Court Of Appeals, Meredith R. Miller
An Illusory Right To Appeal: Substantial Constitutional Questions At The New York Court Of Appeals, Meredith R. Miller
Pace Law Review
No abstract provided.
Albany's Dysfunction Denies Due Process, Eric Lane, Laura Seago
Albany's Dysfunction Denies Due Process, Eric Lane, Laura Seago
Pace Law Review
No abstract provided.