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Federal Workers Have Scant Job Protection in the Constitution
In contrast, some state constitutions protect explicitly both the civil service and public employee unions.
Michigan’s High Court Is Charting a Course Against Punitive Excess
The court has perhaps never been friendlier to criminal justice reform.
Dupuis v. Roman Catholic Bishop of Portland
Held that a law that revived claims based on sex acts toward minors that were previously time-barred impairs a defendant's vested right to be free from a claim once its statute of limitations has expired, finding that a prohibition on laws reviving expired claims "runs as a theme" throughout the text of Maine's Constitution.
State v. Francisco Edgar Tirado
Held that North Carolina's "cruel or unusual" punishment clause — construed consistently with a separate state constitutional provision specifying the types of punishment laws may impose, without limitations based on age — would provide less protection against life-without-parole sentences for juveniles than the Eighth Amendment, so must be interpreted in lockstep with the federal "cruel and unusual" punishment clause.
Cherokee Nation v. U.S. Department of the Interior
Held that the governor possesses constitutional and statutory authority to represent the state’s interests in litigation involving tribal gaming contracts, including to choose the counsel who will represent his position. The governor was a named defendant in his official capacity in the underlying litigation, and the state attorney general sought to assume control of defending the state’s interests over the objection of the governor, who had already employed separate counsel to represent the state.
Reuss v. Arizona
Healthcare providers sought to block enforcement of Arizona's 15-week abortion ban on the basis that it violates a state constitutional amendment passed in November 2024 that establishes a fundamental right to pre-viability abortion. On plaintiffs' motion for judgment on the pleadings, which the state did not contest, the trial court permanently blocked the ban.
Book Excerpt: Personhood: The New Civil War over Reproduction, by Mary Ziegler
The fetal personhood movement already succeeded in eliminating what many viewed as a fundamental right. Its continued effects could be even further-reaching.
Wisconsin Supreme Court Election Spells a Win for Abortion Rights
The new justice, who previously represented Planned Parenthood, joins the bench as the court is set to decide two major abortion cases.
Lawsuits Allege Unlawful Surveillance of Pregnant Patients
According to the allegations, hospitals and state agencies in New Jersey and Vermont violated rights to privacy and bodily autonomy by drug testing and monitoring pregnant people.
Knight v. Fontes
Will consider whether the retention election process for intermediate appellate judges violates the state constitution's "free and equal" election and equal protection provisions. Voters represented by Goldwater Institute allege that the retention elections -- in which voters currently vote only for the appellate judges who reside in their designated geographic area -- should be statewide, as appellate decisions may have statewide impact, and cases are assigned not based on a judge's residency and regularly transferred.
