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Judicial Interpretation
In considering state constitutional questions, judges may apply an array of methodologies, including originalism and other uses of history, textualism, purposivism, comparativism (including studying other state courts), and common law or precedent.
State constitutions also raise unique interpretation questions. For example, one common issue is whether a state constitutional provision should be interpreted in “lockstep” with the federal constitution.
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The Right to Counsel in an Age of Case-Specific and Systemic Inadequacies
State courts and constitutions can offer meaningful solutions to federal gaps in the right to counsel.
The Rhode Island Constitution: Royal Charter and a Modern Constitutional Convention
The Ocean State’s constitution is notable for protection of its surrounding waters; an update to the document in the 1980s included more than 40 amendments.
North Carolina Supreme Court Throws Out Decades-Old Right-to-Education Case
The decision, which comes after a 2022 change in the composition of the court and reverses the court’s earlier holding in the same case, rests on dubious grounds.
Behind the Movement Toward Humane Punishment
A recent Pennsylvania decision barring mandatory life without parole for felony murder is part of an accelerating trend toward broad state constitutional protections for people in the criminal justice system.
Ohio Supreme Court Hears Arguments in Trans Rights Case
Transgender children and their parents are challenging the state’s ban on gender-affirming care.
The Problem Punishment Poses for Democratic Orders: Ruination and Rights
Transcript of panel from Symposium: State Constitutions and the Limits of Criminal Punishments
Substantive Rights That Limit Prison Terms
Transcript of panel from Symposium: State Constitutions and the Limits of Criminal Punishments
Professor Robert F. Williams Keynote and Introduction: The Perpetual Guardians of the Penitentiary Houses
Transcript of panel from Symposium: State Constitutions and the Limits of Criminal Punishments