Constitutional Law Commons^™

Guardrails For Discretionary Powers: A Case Comment On The State Of Tamil Nadu V The Governor Of Tamil Nadu And Another, Pranav Verma

National Law School Journal

This Case Comment argues that by prescribing timelines for the president and the governors to grant or withhold assent to bills in The State of Tamil Nadu v the Governor of Tamil Nadu, decided in April 2025, the Supreme Court did not exceed its constitutional role, as argued by some critics. Instead, it applied established administrative law principles—relevant considerations, natural justice, and absence of mala fides—to the specific power of granting or withholding assent to bills. These principles have been long used to guide the other powers of the president, the governors, and the speaker/chairman. The court thereby reinforced …

A Conversation About Stare Decisis, Debra A. Livingston, John Q. Barrett

Faculty Scholarship

John Q. Barrett (“JQB”)

Chief Judge Debra Ann Livingston, welcome back to St. John’s.

The Chief Judge has been a friend to us for many years. It is an honor to host someone of her talent and someone in her position: the Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

We’re going to have a conversation for the first part of the program, about judging, her work, and stare decisis. But first, we need to meet you and hear a little bit about your background — where you are from — and the path that took …

"What Shall Be Orthodox" In Polarized Times: Overview And Response To Commentators, Linda C. Mcclain, James E. Fleming

Faculty Scholarship

“If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein.” Justice Robert Jackson wrote this celebrated passage in his majority opinion in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette (1943), which protected the First Amendment right of Jehovah’s Witness children not to participate in a compulsory flag salute in public schools. In recent years, protests against imposed orthodoxy—usually invoking Barnette—have occurred in …

An Originalist Case For Birthright Citizenship Of Unlawful Immigrants' Children: Anti-Gypsy And Anti-Chinese Restrictions As Context, Jed Handelsman Shugerman

Faculty Scholarship

The Trump administration and other opponents of birthright citizenship for the children of “unlawful immigrants” make the following originalist claim about the Fourteenth Amendment: Even if the clause meant birthright citizenship, it applies today only to “lawful immigrants,” because the category of “unlawful immigrant” or “illegal immigrant” did not exist in the 1860s, when the clause was written and ratified. Opponents also argue that the Fourteenth Amendment’s citizenship clause originally implied a “loyalty” or “allegiance” requirement.

These assertions are historically inaccurate.

To the contrary, the concept of “unlawful immigrants” existed in the 1850s-60s, and Americans ratified birthright citizenship without indicating …

A Historical Case For A Robust But Non-Remedial Seventh Amendment, Jed Handelsman Shugerman

Faculty Scholarship

In Jarkesy, the Supreme Court rightly held that the Seventh Amendment required a jury trial for a case fundamentally similar to common law fraud, and it rightly limited the scope of the “public rights” exception to the Seventh Amendment. Grounded in historical and originalist methods, this essay makes four suggestions after Jarkesy:

1. Following Jarkesy, the judiciary should continue a more robust enforcement of the Seventh Amendment right to a jury trial. The courts should eliminate the “public rights” exception to the Seventh Amendment, which does not appear to have an original link to the Seventh Amendment. The …

Editors And Staff Members

Public Land & Resources Law Review

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents

Public Land & Resources Law Review

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Editors

Public Land & Resources Law Review

No abstract provided.

Property Clause Power Play: The Blm's Conservation Rule And Loper Bright, Meridian S. Wappett, Sandra B. Zellmer

Public Land & Resources Law Review

This article examines the implications of Loper Bright on public land management through rulemaking. Part II provides a comprehensive overview of the case, its holding, and its potential ramifications. Part III delves into the history of the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”), to illuminate the evolution and underlying rationale for agency deference. Part IV analyzes the constitutional framework underpinning the BLM’s statutory authority, rooted primarily in the Property Clause, which delegates the task of making “needful” rules governing public lands to Congress and to federal land management agencies. Finally, Part V argues that the Rule is valid, whether a reviewing court …

A Most Essential Power: The Case For Restoring Comprehensive Land Use Authority In Indian Country, Michelle Bryan

Public Land & Resources Law Review

Part I of this article provides a brief overview of allotment and its lingering jurisdictional quagmire on impacted reservations. Stepping outside of Indian Country, Part II then outlines the U.S. Supreme Court’s longstanding recognition of sweeping, area-wide government land use authority—authority it considers among the “most essential” and “least limitable.” The Court has never applied this established law when determining tribal sovereignty over land use. That application is long overdue.

Part III details how we arrived at this state of affairs—how tribes, despite starting with sovereign control over land use throughout their territories, experienced losses in that authority over time …

Water Knows No Boundaries: Tribal Jurisdiction Over Non-Indians' Off-Reservation Conduct That Threatens On-Reservation Tribal Water Resources, Wesley J. Furlong, Lori E. Blumenthal

Public Land & Resources Law Review

This Article begins by discussing Manoomin and Sauk-Suiattle, orienting the reader to how these complicated jurisdictional issues have been addressed by Tribal courts. Next, this Article sets forth the current framework under Montana and Merrion for determining the extent of Tribal civil jurisdiction over non-Indians. Next, this Article examines the caselaw establishing Tribal Nations’ inherent sovereign authority to exercise civil jurisdiction over non-Indian activities and conduct occurring on-reservation that threaten or affect Tribal water resources and rights. Finally, this Article examines the caselaw that lays the groundwork for extending Tribal Nations’ civil jurisdiction over non-Indian activities and conduct occurring off-reservation …

Treaty Justice: Charles Wilkinson's Homage To The Boldt Decision, Michael C. Blumm

Public Land & Resources Law Review

Charles Wilkinson, a beloved teacher, author, and advisor, gave his readers perhaps his most personal gift in Treaty Justice: The Northwest Tribes, the Boldt Decision, and the Recognition of Fishing Rights (U. Washington Press, 2024). Wilkinson finished the manuscript just a week before his unexpected death, at age 81, in 2023. The book is a blend of personal memoirs of countless encounters of people involved in the seminal Boldt decision–which revolutionized treaty fishing rights– and its aftermath, and part of legal history by an analyst who was acutely sensitive to the vagaries of both law and history. We are fortunate …

Abandoning The Iron Horse: Railroad Rights-Of-Way And The Implied Doctrine Of Reverter On Indian Reservations, Arthur B. Macomber

Public Land & Resources Law Review

Land title issues on Indian Reservations are notoriously but unnecessarily complex. Unsettled land titles and the resulting fragile land ownership status on Indian Reservations are well-known factors impeding productive land uses, the cure of environmental degradation, and Indian sovereignty, ownership, and control over sustainable land uses. Some lawsuits even question the existence of a Reservation itself. Land titles to many parcels on Indian Reservations have been split into thousands of owners. Using existing law and principles of equity, abandoned Reservation rights-of-way of many types do not have to sit unused and economically unproductive. Future lawsuits and other wasteful societal friction …

Powering Progress: How Ferc Order 2023'S Cluster Study Process Aims To Revolutionize Grid Interconnection, Lowell J. Chandler

Public Land & Resources Law Review

This Article analyzes Order 2023’s cornerstone reform: the replacement of the traditional first-come, first-served serial queue process with a more sophisticated first-ready, first-served cluster study approach. The Article also provides a basic introduction to utility regulation in the United States. While Order 2023’s change promises to revolutionize grid interconnection, the Article also considers whether additional reforms may be necessary to fully realize FERC’s vision of an efficient, equitable interconnection process.

Perempuan: Keterwakilan Dalam Partai Politik Dan Badan Legislatif, Inna Insan, Fide Gracia Simatupang, Sharon Golda Ylleanor

Jurnal Konstitusi & Demokrasi

Partisipasi perempuan dalam politik merupakan salah satu indikator penting dalam menilai kualitas demokrasi suatu negara. Representasi yang setara antara laki-laki dan perempuan, khususnya dalam partai politik dan badan legislatif, tidak hanya menjadi wujud dari keadilan gender, tetapi juga menjadi sarana untuk memperkaya pengambilan kebijakan yang dapat dinilai inklusif dan responsif terhadap kebutuhan seluruh warga negara. Namun dalam kenyataannya, keterlibatan perempuan dalam ranah ini masih diwarnai dengan berbagai tantangan struktural, budaya, dan historis.

Jepang, Indonesia, dan Taiwan merupakan tiga negara di Asia Timur dan Tenggara dengan latar belakang sejarah, budaya, dan sistem politik yang berbeda, namun pada ketiganya terdapat persamaan dinamika …

Valuation Procedure For Condemnation: A Fifty State Survey, David Griffiths

BYU Law Review

The Fifth Amendment requires statutorily authorized condemnors to provide just compensation to landowners for all takings. The procedural method used by states to determine just compensation varies widely among states and is often separate from the more standard procedures existing in traditional civil litigation. Regardless of their method, all fifty states and the District of Columbia each have their own unique procedure for determining just compensation. This Note distinctly classifies the procedural schemes currently used by states to initially value just compensation of condemned property into three general categories: (1) schemes that rely on commissioners to determine just compensation, (2) …

Penguatan Penegakan Etik Kepolisian Republik Indonesia Pada Komisi Kepolisian Nasional, Thoriq Hardiansyah

Jurnal Konstitusi & Demokrasi

In recent years there have been cases of abuse of authority committed by the Polri. this has a negative impact on the image of the police in the community. in handling the case also based on the law can only be carried out through the internal Polri in this case the Propam division through the Police Code of Ethics Commission (KKEP). The research method used is a qualitative method by combining data including normative, phenomena and in-depth analysis through comparison. the results of this ethical enforcement are not transparent and do not match what violators do. So that the results …

Redesain Konsep Konsultasi Pembentukan Pkpu Dalam Menindaklanjuti Putusan Mahkamah Konstitusi, Daffa Ladro Kusworo

Jurnal Konstitusi & Demokrasi

The research aims to identify problems in the implementation of consultation as part of the mechanism of regulation formation between KPU and DPR and the government, especially in following up the Constitutional Court's decision. The research begins by first describing the dynamics of the consultation process and its results, which are passive and tend to be formalistic after the conclusion of the RDP forum is no longer binding based on the Constitutional Court Decision 92/PUU-XIV/2016. This research uses a doctrinal method that refers to the laws and regulations related to the consultation process of the KPU together with the DPR …

Peran Dewan Perwakilan Daerah (Dpd) Sebagai Representasi Daerah Di Masa Pandemi, Ryan Muthiara Wasti

Jurnal Konstitusi & Demokrasi

The COVID-19 pandemic has been one of the most challenging phases for all countries affected by it, including Indonesia. The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are not limited to the health sector but also extend to other areas such as the economy and society. Given the various impacts of COVID-19 felt by the community, new rules regarding new norms or what is often referred to as the “new normal” have begun to be implemented in various regions. Therefore, law enforcement during the COVID-19 pandemic does not only involve policymakers at the central government level but also requires the involvement of …

“Absolute And Arbitrary”: How The Supreme Court’S Certiorari Power Violates The Nondelegation Doctrine, Dinis Cheian

BYU Law Review

The Exceptions Clause of Article III of the Constitution is clear that “Congress” “shall make” the rules prescribing the Court’s “appellate jurisdiction.” And so Congress did for almost 150 years. But in the twentieth century, Congress delegated its power to the Supreme Court in the form of—as Chief Justice Taft demanded—”absolute and arbitrary” discretion to pick its appellate cases. Today, under the resulting certiorari regime, the Court enjoys that unbridled discretion in selecting its cases.

Because Congress delegated its power to the Court without articulating “an intelligible principle,” certiorari jurisdiction violates the nondelegation doctrine and is unconstitutional. This Article is …

The Confined Life: Restrictions On Post-Conviction Sex Offenders Meets Habeas Corpus's "In Custody" Requirement, Christian Futch

Georgia Criminal Law Review

Clements v. Florida is a recent Eleventh Circuit decision holding that the court could not hear the habeas petition of a post-conviction sex offender in Florida since he failed to meet the “in custody” requirement for filing a habeas petition. However, the Eleventh Circuit did not consider the land restrictions in place against the petitioner and other sex offenders in Florida. This decision may leave sex offenders without an avenue to challenge the restrictions in place against them. Such restrictions have led to homelessness and poverty leaving sex offenders with no place to work or live, in poverty, as outcasts …

Misreading The Federal Child Pornography Statutes, Owen Senders

Georgia Criminal Law Review

For the past 40 years, federal courts have committed two grievous textual errors in interpreting the federal child-pornography statutes and sentencing guidelines. These errors have caused hundreds of wrongful convictions—many the bases for decades-long sentences—and have produced a body of caselaw that is profoundly incoherent and in direct conflict with basic tenets of First Amendment doctrine. They have also likely endangered children. This article identifies these errors, surveys their consequences, and suggests legal arguments for people charged or convicted under the child-pornography statutes.

The first error impacts the application of all of the federal child-pornography statutes and sentencing guidelines. These …

Directing Unconstitutional Verdicts: When Judges Become Jurors On Self-Defense, Anjali Pathmanathan

Georgia Criminal Law Review

The right to self-defense is one of the oldest and most universal concepts in Anglo-American criminal law and criminal procedure. Under this defense, an accused person, who honestly believed that using force was necessary to protect themself from imminent danger, did nothing criminal even if another person was harmed as a result. To assert self-defense at trial, however, the accused must admit to intentionally committing the forceful acts alleged to explain how they only used such force to save themself from immediate harm. Once an accused has made such a grave admission, the jury must consider whether the force was …

Sosiologi Hukum Dan Perubahan Sosial: Studi Kasus Uu No. 35 Tahun 2014 Tentang Perlindungan Anak Sebagai Respon Terhadap Kesadaran Sosial Yang Meningkat Akan Hak Anak, Fahrul Rozi

Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan

Dalam konteks sosial yang dinamis, kesadaran akan hak anak telah meningkat, terlihat dari perhatian masyarakat terhadap isu-isu seperti kekerasan, eksploitasi, dan diskriminasi. Meskipun UU No. 35 Tahun 2014 memberikan kerangka hukum yang kuat untuk melindungi hak-hak anak, tantangan dalam pelaksanaannya masih ada, termasuk kurangnya sumber daya dan koordinasi antar lembaga. Anak jalanan, sebagai kelompok yang paling rentan, sering kali terjebak dalam siklus kemiskinan dan stigma sosial, yang menghambat upaya perlindungan. Menekankan pentingnya edukasi dan sosialisasi mengenai hak anak, serta peran aktif masyarakat dan media dalam mendukung perlindungan anak. Dengan kolaborasi antara pemerintah, masyarakat, dan lembaga swadaya masyarakat, diharapkan hak-hak anak …

Egyptian Public Economic Policies Between The Supreme Constitutional Court And The State, Dina Sherif Abdelrahman

Theses and Dissertations

To fully understand the present, it is useful to trace the past. The relationship between the rule of law and economic development has been a significant topic in the literature. In the 1960s, it was believed that economic development required regulated markets in which the state played an active role. However, when it became evident that the state's involvement in the economy yielded few of the promised benefits, economic neoliberalism emerged. This involved the state withdrawing from the economy and allowing the market to take the lead. Still, the state must govern the institutional conditions necessary for the markets. These …

انعكاس التعديلات الدستورية لعامي 2011 و2022 على السلطات العامة في النظام الدستوري الأردني, Dyana Awad Mostafa Dwas

Journal of the Association of Arab Universities for Research in Higher Education مجلة اتحاد الجامعات العربية للبحوث في التعليم العالي

هدفت الدراسة الموسومة بــ "انعكاس التعديلات الدستورية لعامي 2011 و2022 على السلطات العامة في النظام الدستوري الأردني"، إلى تسليط الضوء على التعديلات الدستورية التي طرأت على الدستور الأردني للأعوام (2011-2022)، وبيان أبرز التعديلات التي أثرت على السلطة التشريعية، والسلطة التنفيذية، والسلطة القضائية، والتحقق من مدى انعكاس تلك التعديلات إيجاباً أم سلباً على دور السلطات العامة في النظام الدستوري الأردني. ولتحقيق هذه الأهداف تم اتباع المنهج الوصفي التحليلي والمنهج المقارن. وانطلقت الدراسة من فرضية أساسية مفادها أن: "التعديلات على الدستور الأردني للأعوام 2011-2022 قد أثرت بشكلٍ جلي على السلطات العامة في النظام الدستوري الأردني"، حيث تم التحقق من صحة هذه الفرضية، …

The Sealed Palace: How Direct Access To The Supreme Constitutional Court Can Bridge The Gaps In Constitutional Review In Egypt, Ahmed Sameh Fahmi

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the limitations of Egypt’s current constitutional review system and argues for the introduction of a direct access mechanism to the Supreme Constitutional Court (SCC). Under Egypt’s centralized model of judicial review, individuals are restricted to indirect access through ordinary courts, which has resulted in significant procedural and substantive inefficiencies. The referral-based mechanism of judicial review of legislation has caused delays in adjudicating constitutional claims, the insulation of certain laws from review, legislative omissions, and excessive gatekeeping by lower courts. Through a comparative analysis of direct access models in Colombia, Germany, Turkey, and South Africa, the thesis identifies …

The Benefits Of The Fourth Amendment’S Property-Rights Baseline, Nicholas A. Kahn-Fogel

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Taking The Road Less Traveled Makes All The Difference: The Tenth Circuit Applies The Collateral Order Doctrine Narrowly—And Properly—In Coomer V. Make Your Life Epic Llc, Paul Cooke

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Protect The Clearwater V. Montana Department Of Environmental Quality, Gillian Ellison

Public Land & Resources Law Review

In Protect the Clearwater v. Montana Department of Environmental Quality, the Montana Supreme Court reinforced that injunctive relief provisions in the Montana Environmental Protection Act are the exclusive avenue for injunctive relief once a claim has been filed under MEPA. The Court clarified that parties may not separately seek preliminary injunctions under Montana’s general injunction statute when a MEPA action contesting the same permit is already pending.