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Constitutional Law

Selected Works

2017

Articles 1 - 7 of 7

Full-Text Articles in Jurisprudence

Ideal Theory And The Limits Of Historical Narrative, Anthony O'Rourke Nov 2017

Ideal Theory And The Limits Of Historical Narrative, Anthony O'Rourke

Anthony O'Rourke

Some intellectual concepts that once played a central role in America’s constitutional history are, for both better and worse, no longer part of our political language.[1] These concepts may be so alien to us that they would remain invisible without carefully reexamining the past in order to challenge the received narratives of America’s constitutional development.[2] Should constitutional theorists undertake this kind of historical reexamination? If so, to what extent should they be willing to stray from the disciplinary norms that govern intellectual history? And what normative aims can they reasonably expect to achieve by exploring ideas in our …

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Look Back At The Rehnquist Era And An Overview Of The 2004 Supreme Court Term, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

Look Back At The Rehnquist Era And An Overview Of The 2004 Supreme Court Term, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.

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An Overview Of The October 2005 Supreme Court Term, Erwin Chemerinsky Jun 2017

An Overview Of The October 2005 Supreme Court Term, Erwin Chemerinsky

Erwin Chemerinsky

No abstract provided.

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The President’S Pen And The Bureaucrat’S Fiefdom, John C. Eastman May 2017

The President’S Pen And The Bureaucrat’S Fiefdom, John C. Eastman

John C. Eastman

Perhaps spurred by aggressive use of executive orders and “lawmaking” by administrative agencies by the last couple of presidential administrations, several Justices on the Supreme Court have recently expressed concern that the Court’s deference doctrines have undermined core separation of powers constitutional principles.  This article explores those Justice’s invitation to revisit those deference doctrines and some of the executive actions that have prompted the concern.

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Construction, Originalist Interpretation And The Complete Constitution, Richard Kay Dec 2016

Construction, Originalist Interpretation And The Complete Constitution, Richard Kay

Richard Kay

 In recent years, the literature of constitutional originalism has adopted a new concept, “constitutional construction.” This Essay critically examines that concept. Contrary to some claims, the difference between “interpretation” and “construction” is not well established in common law adjudication. Furthermore, contemporary descriptions of constitutional construction tend to leave some ill-defined discretion in the hands of constitutional decision-makers. Finally, the Essay disputes the claim that constitutional construction is indispensable because the constitutional text is incomplete, that failing to provide a decision-rule for many—indeed for most—constitutional disputes. The Constitution would indeed be incomplete if interpreted according to the “new” or “public …

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Proportionality And Stare Decisis: Proposal For A New Structure, Vlad Perju Dec 2016

Proportionality And Stare Decisis: Proposal For A New Structure, Vlad Perju

Vlad Perju

This paper argues that a change in the formal structure of proportionality analysis can increase the chance of proportionality’s successful transplant into American constitutional law. The change takes the form of an additional and new last step to the existing multi-prong inquiry, which would require judges to assess the outcome of the legal analysis at the previous stages against the disruption that outcome would cause to settled constitutional doctrine. The greater the departure from constitutional precedent, the stronger must be the reasons that justify it. By analogy to Robert Alexy’s “weight” analysis at the balancing stage, I label this new …

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Executive Action And Nonaction, Tom Campbell Dec 2016

Executive Action And Nonaction, Tom Campbell

Tom Campbell

Action by the executive can be challenged by a party with standing, and there is usually no shortage of such parties. The executive’s failure to act, however, is much more difficult to submit to judicial scrutiny. I propose that standards for reviewing such nonaction are available under precedent of the Administrative Procedure Act, and under severability analysis. That is, a reviewing court can determine whether the executive’s failure to enforce part of a law leaves the rest of the law to operate meaningfully as Congress intended (akin to severability analysis), and APA precedent can guide courts to determine whether nonaction …

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