Courts Commons^™

How Traditional And Social Media Shapes Public Perception Of United States Surpeme Court Decisions On Civil Liberties, Leila P. Martin

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This study examines how traditional and social medai shape public perception of U.S. Supreme Court decisions on Civil liberties, focusing on four landmark cases: Dobbs v. Jackson, District of Columbia v. Heller, Materpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, and Obergfell v. Hodges. Using Entmans framing theory, the research analyzes how tone, language, emphasis, and ideological slant differ across media platofrms and how these frames infleunce public attitudes, insitutional trust, and civic understanding. A mixed-methods design combines archival media analysis, national polling data from Pew Rsearch Center and gallup, and an independent survery to asses how media narratives, rather than …

An Open Door Policy: A Contemporary Analysis Of The Continuing Need For Court-Connected Civil Compulsory Arbitration Programs, Joshua D. Rogers

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

Compulsory arbitration could be a crucial instrument in addressing an impending renewed litigation explosion. In the latter half of the twentieth century, numerous courts implemented court-connected civil compulsory arbitration programs to help address the substantial problems created by historic increases in civil litigation. Without much fanfare, these programs have been successfully operating to achieve the goals envisioned at their creation—improving judicial economy and efficiency. Despite the success and longevity in adopting jurisdictions, compulsory arbitration has peaked in its adoption and has seemingly faded into the background of the alternative dispute resolution conversation. Neglecting or dismissing this vital tool in the …

New Judicial Federalism At The Crossroads: Observations Of State Constitutionalism In Rhode Island, Melissa A. Long, Geoffrey H. Cole

Northwestern University Law Review

Jurists nationwide are engaged in robust conversations about state constitutionalism and the degree to which their state constitutions are more protective of individual rights than is the United States Constitution. The Rhode Island Supreme Court, like several state supreme courts, largely adheres to the minimum standards of protection that the United States Supreme Court establishes under the federal constitution when interpreting analogous provisions under the state constitution; that is, it follows a lockstep approach with the United States Supreme Court’s interpretation of individual rights guaranteed by the federal constitution that are also protected under the Rhode Island Constitution.

Proponents of …

Geduldig's Footnote: Five-Plus Decades Of State Courts Reckoning With Federal Pregnancy Discrimination Doctrine, Martha F. Davis

Northwestern University Law Review

In Geduldig v. Aiello (1974), the U.S. Supreme Court held that pregnancy discrimination does not constitute sex discrimination. The decision’s constitutional logic has recently been applied in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization and United States v. Skrmetti. Yet over five decades, state courts have overwhelmingly rejected Geduldig’s rationale—both in construing state employment discrimination statutes and in interpreting state constitutional equality provisions. Courts in at least sixteen states have rejected Geduldig’s rationale in construing state employment discrimination laws, while only four states have followed it. Of the ten states with Equal Rights Amendments that have addressed whether …

State Greenhouse Gas Emissions Disclosure Laws And The Dormant Commerce Clause: Leveraging The State Interest In Protecting Residents From Deception To Pass The Pike Balancing Test, Matthew Macphail

Northwestern University Law Review

Misleading corporate claims about greenhouse gas emissions pose a high risk of consumer deception, as there is currently no uniform federal standard governing how companies must measure or disclose those emissions. Without a national regulatory scheme, firms can selectively report, use inconsistent methodologies, or market vague “carbon neutral” claims, making it difficult for consumers to assess accuracy or compare companies’ representations.

In 2023, California introduced legislation requiring companies doing business in the state to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions in an effort to bring transparency to this area. But such state-level mandates face a constitutional obstacle: the Dormant Commerce Clause, …

Textual (In)Difference In State Search-And-Seizure Provisions, Quinn Yeargain

Northwestern University Law Review

Over the past 250 years, state constitutional drafters have refined the scope of rights and liberties protected by their constitutions’ texts. Today, all state constitutions include a search-and-seizure provision—and though only a minority follow the layout, text, and context of the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, most of them bear a striking resemblance to it. However, textual variations abound. Some of them may seem minor, like using the word “possessions” instead of “effects,” or mandating that warrants describe their intended targets “as nearly as may be” instead of requiring that they “particularly describ[e]” them. But others, like the addition …

The New Economic Liberties, Daniel B. Rodriguez

Northwestern University Law Review

Despite the lack of serious interrogation at the federal constitutional level of economic regulations, there continues to be a fairly robust, energetic attention at the level of state constitutional law to so-called economic liberties. In a number of key cases, including, for example, matters involving occupational licensing, state courts have looked to unique features of their respective state constitutions to assess whether and to what extent regulations undertaken under the police power go too far. The rationales for evaluating and, in some cases, invalidating regulations under economic liberties principles are creative, and also controversial. The development of new interpretive approaches …

Child Labor And State Constitutionalism, Andrew Hammond, Helen Hershkoff

Northwestern University Law Review

Almost ninety years after Congress banned “oppressive” child labor as part of the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers are pushing state legislatures to let them put children to work in dangerous poultry plants, at hazardous construction sites, and during late shifts on school nights. Perversely, calls to rollback federal protections are camouflaged in the rhetoric of parents’ rights, casting child labor regulation as intrusive, paternalistic, and even socialist—echoing the same corporate arguments used a century ago when the Child Labor Amendment to the U.S. Constitution went down in defeat. These arguments mask the desperate economic circumstances of a parent claiming …

Court Reform And State Constitutions, Bryna Godar, Miriam Seifter

Northwestern University Law Review

State legislatures regularly propose and enact laws that seek to shape the substantive outcomes of state courts. These maneuvers, including court-packing, jurisdiction-stripping, and more creative changes to judicial selection or authority, would amount to legal earthquakes at the federal level. At the state level, these efforts often receive virtually no attention.

This Essay brings the potent category of outcome-shaping state court reform measures into focus and evaluates it as a question of state constitutional law. We argue that state constitutions, organized around principles of popular sovereignty, do not bar measures that align state courts with popular preferences or the public’s …

State Constitutionalism's Fragile Wall, Adam B. Sopko

Northwestern University Law Review

The adequate and independent state grounds (AISG) doctrine has long demarcated the perimeter of the U.S. Supreme Court’s authority to review state court decisions, limiting review to questions of federal law. AISG maintains the Court’s primacy over federal law and state courts’ supremacy over state law. A comprehensive review of all filings on the Court’s docket from state courts over the last twenty years reveals that recent applications of AISG consist of subtle but significant departures from existing norms that, together, suggest a reformulation of the Court’s power over state courts that threatens their sovereign law development role. This Essay …

State Constitutional Rights And Judicial Power, Zachary D. Clopton

Northwestern University Law Review

On the one hand, we are in a moment when interest in state courts and state constitutional law is growing. Especially, though not exclusively, among those who question the Supreme Court of the United States, there are increasing calls for state supreme courts to rely on state constitutions to expand rights. On the other hand, we are in a moment when interest in reducing the power of the courts is growing. Especially, though not exclusively, among those who question the Supreme Court of the United States, there are increasingly calls for reining in judicial power.

This Essay is not an …

Foreword: Fifty-One Constitutions In An Evolving Federal Order, Misha Bogdanov, Olivia Christ

Northwestern University Law Review

On November 6 and 7, 2025, the Northwestern University Law Review, along with the Brennan Center for Justice and State Court Report, convened for its annual symposium, titled The Power of State Constitutional Rights. The symposium brought together judges, practitioners, and scholars to consider the substantive rights protected by state constitutions, the institutions charged with enforcing them, and the democratic processes through which state constitutional law changes. Across conversations about reproductive freedom, criminal procedure, labor, economic liberty, LGBTQ+ rights, voting, federalism, and judicial design, one proposition repeatedly, and emphatically, came into view: American constitutional law is not exhausted by the …

Masthead

Seattle University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents

Seattle University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Washington Search And Seizure Law: 2026 Update, Justice Charles W. Johnson, Justice Debra L. Stephens, Justice Steven González

Seattle University Law Review

This Survey is intended to serve as a resource which Washington lawyers, judges, law enforcement officers, and others can turn to as an authoritative starting point for researching Washington search and seizure law. In order to be useful as a research tool, this Survey requires periodic updates to address new cases interpreting the Washington constitution and the U.S. Constitution and to reflect the current state of the law. As the U.S. Supreme Court has continued to examine Fourth Amendment search and seizure jurisprudence, its decisions and reflections on Washington law are discussed.

Most of the Survey cases involve the Washington …

Getting Money Out Of Politics By Putting Money Into Politics: A Few Modest Proposals To Reform Seattle’S Democracy Voucher Program, Decker O’Donnell

Seattle University Law Review

Seattle’s Democracy Voucher Program offers an unconventional response to the growing influence of money in American elections: rather than restricting political spending, it seeks to amplify the participation of ordinary voters by providing publicly funded vouchers that residents may assign to participating candidates. This Article examines the program’s development, operation, and constitutional foundation within the modern campaign-finance framework established by Buckley v. Valeo and subsequent Supreme Court decisions. It argues that democracy vouchers provide a constitutionally viable means of broadening participation in campaign financing while mitigating the influence of wealthy donors. The Article identifies two weaknesses in the current system: …

Converting Buildings Is Hard: Why Seattle’S Municipal Government Should Streamline Commercial-To-Residential Conversions, Tyler M. King

Seattle University Law Review

The conversion of commercial buildings into housing is a promising solution to the growing housing crisis in many urban areas. However, despite its potential benefits, the process of repurposing commercial spaces is often stymied by complex zoning codes, high conversion costs, and bureaucratic hurdles. This Article argues that the local and state governments in Seattle should adopt more streamlined policies and offer greater incentives to developers to facilitate these conversions. By reforming zoning regulations and providing targeted financial support, municipalities can reduce the barriers to conversion and unlock the potential of underutilized commercial properties. This article examines the legal and …

Legal Malpractice In Washington: Use Of The Rules Of Professional Conduct, Angelo Tadrous

Seattle University Law Review

Legal malpractice claims are difficult to prove. They are difficult to prove because many jurisdictions require that a plaintiff prove that, but for the lawyer’s misconduct, the client would have fared better. Thus, in a malpractice suit, a plaintiff must try a case within a case. Despite this difficulty, many jurisdictions prohibit the use of the Rules of Professional Conduct when litigating a malpractice case. Washington State is one of these jurisdictions. The Washington Supreme Court held in Hizey v. Carpenter that the Rules of Professional Conduct may not be referred to during trial. This Note argues that this prohibition …

Who Decides The Dead? Interpreting Washington’S Disposition Of Remains Statute, Wyatt Young

Seattle University Law Review

Washington’s disposition-of-remains statute, RCW 68.50.160, is designed to honor a decedent’s expressed wishes regarding the control and disposition of their body after death. Yet recent litigation reveals a critical gap between the statute’s intent-centered design and its practical enforceability. In Larotonda v. Blackburn, a trial court acknowledged that irreparable harm would occur if a decedent’s burial wishes were ignored but nonetheless denied relief on the grounds that the individual designated to carry out those wishes lacked standing. The result was a legal paradox: a statute that recognizes decedent autonomy in theory but withholds any meaningful mechanism for its enforcement …

Much Ado About Nothing: The Effect Of The "Nullity Rule" On Purported Pro Se Litigants In Federal Court, John T. Lambert

Kentucky Law Journal

No abstract provided.