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Seattle University School of Law

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Articles 511 - 540 of 566

Full-Text Articles in Constitutional Law

Freedom Of Religion Vs. Public School Reading Curriculum, Keith Kemper May 1989

Freedom Of Religion Vs. Public School Reading Curriculum, Keith Kemper

Seattle University Law Review

The purpose of this Note is to analyze the decision by the United State Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Mozert v. Hawkins County Board of Education in light of recent United States Supreme Court opinions regarding the free exercise of religion. Section I will explain the legal issues that are relevant in deciding this and similar free exercise cases. Section II will discuss the history and background of the Mozert case. Section III will discuss the different opinions in Mozert. Section IV will analyze and critique the different rationales used to decide this case. After weighing …

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Regulatory Taking Doctrine In Washington: Now You See It, Now You Don't, Richard L. Settle May 1989

Regulatory Taking Doctrine In Washington: Now You See It, Now You Don't, Richard L. Settle

Seattle University Law Review

Within a recent two-month period, the Washington Supreme Court issued decisions in two major regulatory taking cases, Orion Corporation v. State, and Allingham v. City of Seattle. In both cases, land use regulations were challenged on the basis of the taking clauses of the federal and state constitutions. This Article analyzes and critically assesses Orion's ambitious doctrinal initiative in light of the Allingham enigma and charts a tentative course toward more coherent regulatory taking doctrine. A pervasive and hopeful theme of the Article is that a latent, largely unarticulated or misstated doctrine exists, just waiting for explicit judicial …

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Condemnation, Credit, And Corporations In Washington: 100 Years Of Judicial Decisions—Have The Framers' Views Been Followed?, Justice James M. Dolliver Jan 1989

Condemnation, Credit, And Corporations In Washington: 100 Years Of Judicial Decisions—Have The Framers' Views Been Followed?, Justice James M. Dolliver

Seattle University Law Review

As part of the commemoration of Washington's centennial, this Article will examine three parts of the Washington Constitution written and adopted in 1889: article I, section 16,2 the taking clause; article VIII, section 7,3 the municipal credit clause; and article XII, sections 1-22,4 the Corporations Article. This Article will attempt to identify and explain the fundamental premises behind each of the three parts by considering the constitutional text, the specific intent of the framers where discoverable, the climate of the times in the territory and nation in 1889, and the judicial gloss from early case law. Additionally, given these considerations, …

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Science, Freedom Of Conscience And The Establishment Clause, Kyron Huigens Jan 1989

Science, Freedom Of Conscience And The Establishment Clause, Kyron Huigens

Seattle University Law Review

The Constitution presupposes no Supreme Being, institutes no particular truth and contemplates a legal order that is similarly open. The establishment clause maintains constitutional democracy on those terms by invalidating any encroachment on freedom of conscience which religion wielding the power of the state can devise. This Article is an extended defense of that strong conception of the establishment clause. It is in part a reply to those, like Louisell, who have argued that strict construction theories of the clause "establish" something called "The Religion of Secular Humanism." It is in part an attack on the idea that the establishment …

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An Historical Analysis Of Alien Land Law: Washington Territory And State 1853-1889, Mark L. Lazarus Iii Jan 1989

An Historical Analysis Of Alien Land Law: Washington Territory And State 1853-1889, Mark L. Lazarus Iii

Seattle University Law Review

The purpose of this Article is to analyze the historical development of Washington's alien land law from the birth of the territory in 1853 to the drafting of the state constitution in 1889. Because alien land law necessarily involves relationships among people, this Article focuses not only on historical legal sources such as statutes, constitutional material, and judicial opinions, but also on the underlying social forces that compelled change in the law. This Article consists of three sections, the first of which is a brief discussion of the common-law roots of alien land disability in feudal England and its subsequent …

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The Validity Of Washington's Antitakeover Act Under The Commerce And Supremacy Clauses, Maureen B. Callahan, David J. Burman Jan 1989

The Validity Of Washington's Antitakeover Act Under The Commerce And Supremacy Clauses, Maureen B. Callahan, David J. Burman

Seattle University Law Review

This Article addresses the constitutionality of the Washington Act under the Commerce and Supremacy Clauses of the United States Constitution, and concludes that despite its extension to a limited group of foreign corporations, the Act is indeed constitutional under both clauses.

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The Senator And The Constitution: An Interview With Orrin G. Hatch, David Skover, Ronald Collins Jan 1989

The Senator And The Constitution: An Interview With Orrin G. Hatch, David Skover, Ronald Collins

Faculty Articles

Modern constitutional scholarship tends to focus exclusively on the role of the judiciary in the development of constitutional law. Recognizing that this "court-positivist" outlook leaves substantial gaps in constitutional literature, the authors turn their scholarly attention to legislative and executive contributions to the field. The subject of their inquiry is U.S. Senator Orrin G. Hatch, who has chaired the Constitutional Subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and who is one of the Senate's most recognized constitutional commentators. The authors interviewed Senator Hatch about his positions on various issues in constitutional law and theory, and annotated the interview extensively to analyze …

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In The Beginning: The Washington Supreme Court A Century Ago, Charles H. Sheldon, Michael Stohr-Gillmore Jan 1989

In The Beginning: The Washington Supreme Court A Century Ago, Charles H. Sheldon, Michael Stohr-Gillmore

Seattle University Law Review

This Article will discuss (1) the politics that influenced the drafting of the judicial article (article IV) in the constitutional convention; (2) the election of the first five members of the bench and the backgrounds of those inaugural judges; (3) the particular approach toward judicial review adopted by these five jurists (activism-restraint); and (4) the personal relations among these members of the supreme court. This Article will provide a personal perspective of the first five judges and their court.

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Washington's Diminished Capacity Defense Under Attack, John Q. La Fond, Kimberly A. Gaddis Jan 1989

Washington's Diminished Capacity Defense Under Attack, John Q. La Fond, Kimberly A. Gaddis

Seattle University Law Review

This article will discuss the historical development of the diminished capacity defense and analyze its current conceptual structure and use in Washington. It will then analyze the most recently proposed bill attacking the diminished capacity defense in this state, Substitute House Bill No. 1179. Should this legislation (or some variation thereof) be enacted in future sessions, the Washington Supreme Court will undoubtedly be forced to review powerful constitutional challenges to the validity of convictions obtained under the new law. At the very least, the court will have to determine whether the diminished capacity defense is constitutionally required. The court will …

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Judicial Conscience And Natural Rights: A Reply To Professor Ledewitz, Harry V. Jaffa Jan 1988

Judicial Conscience And Natural Rights: A Reply To Professor Ledewitz, Harry V. Jaffa

Seattle University Law Review

In our Spring 1987 issue, Professor Jaffa authored an essay in which he posited that the fundamental principles of equality and other tenets of natural law expressed in the Declaration of Independence were originally intended to be the principles of the Constitution of 1787 Professor Jaffa asserted that while the Framers believed in the "law of nature and nature's God," many contemporary constitutional thinkers, including fellow conservatives Chief Justice William Rehnquist and Attorney General Edwin Meese, do not. Thus, Jaffa argued, those conservatives "who today most aggressively appeal to the doctrine of original intent are among its most resolute antagonists." …

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Reconstituting 'Original Intent:' A Constitutional Law Encyclopedia For The Next Century, David Skover Jan 1988

Reconstituting 'Original Intent:' A Constitutional Law Encyclopedia For The Next Century, David Skover

Faculty Articles

In this article Professor Skover reviews the Encyclopedia of the American Constitution. The Encyclopedia describes, in a fairly balanced and accurate manner, the contemporary understanding of the American constitutional heritage. The Encyclopedia exhibits the important functions that an encyclopedic work may serve in the legal culture of the twenty-first century. This review essay explores this thought. Part I describes the Encyclopedia's organizational structure, the interdisciplinary nature of its commentaries, and the divergent characters of its contributors. Part II considers the potential for its use and explores its role as the record of "original intent" for this century's constitutional "founders."

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Judicial Conscience And Natural Rights: A Reply To Professor Jaffa, Bruce Ledewitz Jan 1987

Judicial Conscience And Natural Rights: A Reply To Professor Jaffa, Bruce Ledewitz

Seattle University Law Review

This Article replies to Professor Harry V. Jaffa’s article “What Were the ‘Original Intentions’ of the Framers of the Constitution of the United States?” The Article focuses on the gap the author argues Professor Jaffa left between the consciousness of the Framers and the practice of judicial review today. The author argues that the understanding that Professor Jaffa brings to the intent of the Framers is one that opens up the Constitution to the call of justice, but the author critiques the utility of Professor Jaffa’s work in resolving the contentious constitutional issues of today, including abortion and capital punishment.

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Foreword: On Jaffa, Lincoln, Marshall, And Original Intent, Lewis E. Lehrman Jan 1987

Foreword: On Jaffa, Lincoln, Marshall, And Original Intent, Lewis E. Lehrman

Seattle University Law Review

This Foreword introduces the article to follow written by Harry V. Jaffa, scholar of Abraham Lincoln’s political philosophy. The Foreward provides background material necessary to contextualize the ongoing debate surrounding constitutional interpretation emphasizing original intent addressed in Jaffa's article.

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Professor Harry V. Jaffa Divides The House: A Respectful Protest And A Defense Brief, Robert L. Stone Jan 1987

Professor Harry V. Jaffa Divides The House: A Respectful Protest And A Defense Brief, Robert L. Stone

Seattle University Law Review

This Article replies to Professor’ Jaffa’s article, “What Were the ‘Original Intentions’ of the Framers of the Constitution of the United States?,” and book, The Crisis of the House Divided. The Article argues that Professor Jaffa’s method throughout his indictment of legal scholars has three flaws. First, the Article argues that Professor Jaffa takes statements of sensible political compromises-such as support for judicial restraint, British traditions, and local self-government-and treats them as if they were philosophical statements. Second, the author contends that Professor Jaffa assembles a composite indictment, which in law is appropriately applied only to an indictment against …

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Washington's Partial Veto Power: Judicial Construction Of Article Iii, Section 12, Heidi A. Irvin Jan 1987

Washington's Partial Veto Power: Judicial Construction Of Article Iii, Section 12, Heidi A. Irvin

Seattle University Law Review

This Note recommends that the separate subject test employed by Washington courts in reviewing the constitutional validity of partial vetoes be abandoned like the affirmative-negative test before it. In the alternative, the Constitution should be amended to remove any perceived need for a subjective judicial test. As a last-choice solution to the problem of uncertainty and inefficiency in the legislative process, the legislature should use its override powers more extensively.

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Seven Questions For Professor Jaffa, George Anastaplo Jan 1987

Seven Questions For Professor Jaffa, George Anastaplo

Seattle University Law Review

This Article poses questions inspired by the four essays collected in Professor Harry V. Jaffa’s article “What Were the ‘Original Intentions’ of the Framers of the Constitution of the United States?” The Article offers, in addition to fresh reflections upon these questions, three appendices, which bear upon various matters touched upon by Professor Jaffa. These appendices include, “The Founders of Our Founders: Jerusalem, Athens, and the American Constitution,” “The Ambiguity of Justice in Plato’s Republic,” and “Private Rights and Public Law: The Founders’ Perspective.” The Epilogue provides informed observations of a scholar who comments on the differences between Professor …

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What Were The "Original Intentions" Of The Framers Of The Constitution Of The United States?, Harry V. Jaffa Jan 1987

What Were The "Original Intentions" Of The Framers Of The Constitution Of The United States?, Harry V. Jaffa

Seattle University Law Review

This Article explains how the doctrine of original intent might be defended as the basis for interpreting the Constitution. The deepest political differences in American history have always been differences concerning the meaning of the Constitution, whether as originally intended, or as amended. Since the Civil War, the debate has often taken the form of a dispute over whether or not the Civil War amendments, notably the fourteenth, have changed the way in which the whole Constitution, and not only the amended parts, is read or interpreted. It is not possible to even discuss how or whether the Civil War …

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The First Amendment, Commercial Speech, And The Advertising Lawyer, Justice Vernon R. Pearson, Michael O'Neill Jan 1986

The First Amendment, Commercial Speech, And The Advertising Lawyer, Justice Vernon R. Pearson, Michael O'Neill

Seattle University Law Review

The Supreme Court, in a few cases scattered over several decades, has implied the existence of a public right to a free flow of information as one facet of the freedom of speech; yet the Court has refrained from specifically basing a decision on any such right. But with the recent line of commercial speech decisions, the concept-of a public right to a free flow of information has become firmly established and merits detailed examination. That right, and the rationale of the Court in its commercial speech cases, may have far ranging implications. This Article explores these implications in three …

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Dismantling The Exclusionary Rule: United States V. Leon And The Courts Of Washington—Should Good Faith Excuse Bad Acts?, Catherine Cruikshank Jan 1986

Dismantling The Exclusionary Rule: United States V. Leon And The Courts Of Washington—Should Good Faith Excuse Bad Acts?, Catherine Cruikshank

Seattle University Law Review

This Note will review briefly the history of the exclusionary rule under fourth amendment jurisprudence, with special emphasis given to the purposes the rule has traditionally been thought to serve. The significance of the Leon decision then will be examined in light of the emergence in Washington of an interpretation of article I, section 7 that diverges from the Supreme Court's interpretations of the fourth amendment. This Note will conclude by discussing how article I, section 7 continues to embody the several purposes traditionally served by the exclusionary rule.

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The Court-Ordered Predisposition Evaluation Under Washington's Juvenile Justice Act: A Violation Of The Privilege Against Self-Incrimination?—Wash. Rev. Code § 13.40, Judith H. Ramseyer Jan 1986

The Court-Ordered Predisposition Evaluation Under Washington's Juvenile Justice Act: A Violation Of The Privilege Against Self-Incrimination?—Wash. Rev. Code § 13.40, Judith H. Ramseyer

Seattle University Law Review

This Comment analyzes the significance of the principles animating the constitutional privilege against self-incrimination by first looking at the purposes of Washington’s Juvenile Justice Act; second, by examining the status of the privilege against self-incrimination during sentencing; and third, by applying the values protected by the privilege to the use of predisposition psychological evaluations in Washington juvenile courts.

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"Phoenix Rising" And Federalism Analysis, David Skover Jan 1986

"Phoenix Rising" And Federalism Analysis, David Skover

Faculty Articles

The reaction to the Supreme Court's ruling in Garcia v. San Antonio Metropolitan Transit Authority leaves the decided impression that Garcia is a case of some importance, a milestone in the evolution of the constitutional doctrine of federalism. Whether Garcia will mark a radical shift in the jurisprudence of federalism, with major practical ramifications in the balance of federal and state economic regulatory powers, or whether the case is destined for a quick and unceremonious overruling is a question of some moment. This article evaluates the probable significance of Garcia for the development of the constitutional doctrine of federalism.

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The Residential Tenant's Right To Freedom Of Political Expression, James E. Lobsenz, Timothy M. Swanson Jan 1986

The Residential Tenant's Right To Freedom Of Political Expression, James E. Lobsenz, Timothy M. Swanson

Seattle University Law Review

This Article outlines the arguments to be made on behalf of residential tenants who display political signs and who encounter threats of eviction, rent increases, and other forms of landlord opposition. In Section II, the Article describes the development of the general principles of constitutional law applicable to disputes between property owners and tenants who wish to use the property owners’ premises as a forum for the expression of the tenants’ ideas and beliefs. Tracing the history of the United States Supreme Court rulings in this area, the authors analyze the waxing and waning of first amendment speech rights, the …

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Constitutional Review Of State Eminent Domain Legislation: Hawaii Housing Authority V. Midkiff, Stuart P. Kastner Jan 1985

Constitutional Review Of State Eminent Domain Legislation: Hawaii Housing Authority V. Midkiff, Stuart P. Kastner

Seattle University Law Review

The State of Hawaii has a unique land ownership problem directly affecting many of the state's homeowners: a handful of people own a large percentage of the land available for residential housing." Consequently, a significant proportion of homeowners rent, under long-term leases, the land on which their homes are built. In 1967 the Hawaii legislature took action to break up this concentration of ownership by enacting the Land Reform Act. The legislature declared that such ownership was a threat to the health, safety, and welfare of Hawaii's citizens because of its significant contribution to the spiraling inflation of land values. …

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Survey Of Washington Search And Seizure Law, Justice Robert F. Utter Jan 1985

Survey Of Washington Search And Seizure Law, Justice Robert F. Utter

Seattle University Law Review

This Survey is designed to assist lawyers and judges who must argue and resolve search and seizure issues in Washington State. The Survey summarizes the controlling state and federal cases on search and seizure law and uses as an additional reference W. LAFAVE, Search and Seizure: A Treatise on the Fourth Amendment (1978). Washington courts are likely to analyze future search and seizure issues under both the fourth amendment and Washington Constitution article I, section 7. The difference in wording between the two provisions is substantial, suggesting different degrees or types of privacy protection. This Survey summarizes the predominant treatment …

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The Washington Constitutional "State Action" Doctrine: A Fundamental Right To State Action, David M. Skover Jan 1985

The Washington Constitutional "State Action" Doctrine: A Fundamental Right To State Action, David M. Skover

Seattle University Law Review

The time is ripe to establish the nature of the Washington "state action" doctrine and its theoretical purposes, and to evaluate its capacity to serve the functions justifying its existence. This Article will perform this exegesis. This Article proposes the dismantlement of the Washington "state action" doctrine and the recognition that cases involving competing private claims of state constitutional liberties present justiciable controversies that must be decided by conscious and comprehensive judicial investigation of the merits.

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Seizing Opportunity, Searching For Theory: Article I, Section 7, George R. Nock Jan 1985

Seizing Opportunity, Searching For Theory: Article I, Section 7, George R. Nock

Seattle University Law Review

Washington case law dealing with searches and seizures has now reached a developmental stage from which it can proceed either haphazardly or along any of several well-defined lines. The purpose of this Article is not to provide a compendium of Washington search-and-seizure cases. Rather, the Article analyzes the more recent (and some of the earlier) cases in which the Washington Supreme Court has interpreted article I, section 7, and suggests several alternative theoretical bases for the further development of Washington constitutional search-and-seizure jurisprudence.

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A Constitutional Right To An Appeal: Guarding Against Unacceptable Risks Of Erroneous Conviction, James E. Lobsenz Jan 1985

A Constitutional Right To An Appeal: Guarding Against Unacceptable Risks Of Erroneous Conviction, James E. Lobsenz

Seattle University Law Review

The many consequences of "constitutionalizing" the right to appeal become evident only when one answers certain underlying questions about the nature of an appeal. What are the essential elements of an appeal? Why should we view the criminal defendant's right to appeal as an element of due process of law? Part II of this Article seeks to develop a theoretical due process framework for use in deciding when the right to appeal under article I, section 22 of the Washington Constitution has been unconstitutionally abridged or denied. Part III contains an analysis of oral argument as an essential element of …

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The Establishment Clause And The Free Exercise Clause Of The Washington Constitution—A Proposal To The Supreme Court, Frank J. Conklin, James M. Vaché Jan 1985

The Establishment Clause And The Free Exercise Clause Of The Washington Constitution—A Proposal To The Supreme Court, Frank J. Conklin, James M. Vaché

Seattle University Law Review

This Article traces the independent development in the case law interpreting the Washington Constitution and in the drafting of the document itself. It is the position of the authors that the strict approach and consequent rigorous, independent analysis by the Washington court is not a necessary or appropriate method of deciding church-state issues, at least in many contexts. When examining establishment clause issues under the state constitution, the Washington State Supreme Court should therefore modify its previous position and adopt a more common-sense approach in lieu of the doctrinaire rigidity that has characterized prior opinions.

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Framers Intent: The Illegitimate Uses Of History, Pierre Schlag Jan 1985

Framers Intent: The Illegitimate Uses Of History, Pierre Schlag

Seattle University Law Review

In this Article, I will present a series of attacks on intentionalism. My efforts are aimed at eroding the high ground that the intentionalist position appears to enjoy in the interpretation of state and federal constitutions. Currently, one almost has to justify departure from the framers intent in advancing a nonconforming constitutional interpretation. This Article is an attempt to reverse this assumed burden of persuasion.

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Washington's Equal Rights Amendment: It Says What It Means And It Means What It Says, Patricia L. Proebsting Jan 1985

Washington's Equal Rights Amendment: It Says What It Means And It Means What It Says, Patricia L. Proebsting

Seattle University Law Review

This Comment begins with a discussion of the ERA's legislative history and the legislature's attempt to bring state statutes into compliance with the ERA upon its passage. Next, judicial interpretations of the new constitutional guarantee are compared to the interpretation of the Washington Constitution's privileges and immunities clause. Finally, the Comment compares Washington's standard of review with a similar standard used by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and argues that the Washington Supreme Court should adopt the absolute standard applied by the Pennsylvania courts.

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