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Southern Methodist University v. South Central Jurisdictional Conference of the United Methodist Church
Concurrence to Texas Supreme Court decision finding a church conference has statutory authority to sue Southern Methodist University for breach of contract, in which four justices highlighted the need to consider the extent to which the state constitution protects the autonomy of religious organizations, independent of the First Amendment.
Symposium: The Power of State Constitutional Rights
How are state constitutions providing means to protect rights in the face of federal retrenchment?
People v. Armstrong
Michigan Supreme Court held that, following the state's legalization of some marijuana use and possession, the smell of marijuana, standing alone, does not constitute probable cause to justify the warrantless search of a car.
Sikora v. Iowa
Iowa Supreme Court held that a former incarcerated person’s state constitutional and tort damages claims against the state and correction officers for releasing him from prison five months late were barred by the legislature’s choice not to waive sovereign immunity for false imprisonment claims. Three dissenting justices would have held that the right to sue an official for false imprisonment was part of the common law at the state constitution’s adoption and was secured by its liberty guarantees, precluding legislators from eliminating that right in the state tort claims act.
Kansas v. Harper
Trial court found requirement that drivers' licenses display sex as assigned at birth did not violate equal protection by discriminating based on sex or transgender status, or a right to personal autonomy or informational privacy. Appellate court reversed on separate grounds and remanded to a new judge
Washington v. Meta Platforms
Washington Supreme Court will consider whether the state's Fair Campaign Practices Act violates First Amendment speech protections or is preempted by the federal Communications Decency Act.
The Landmark Case That Extended Speech Rights on Private Property
In 1980, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that Princeton University could not exclude members of the public from distributing political materials on campus.
League of Women Voters of South Carolina v. Alexander
South Carolina Supreme Court held that partisan gerrymandering claims are nonjusticiable political questions, which state courts cannot review, under the state constitution.
Grube v. Trader; State v. Rogan
Hawaii Supreme Court held that law requiring courts to "seal or otherwise remove all judiciary files" from any public electronic judicial database must be interpreted as providing two options to avoid state constitutional right to public access and separation of powers issues: removal of judicial records from the qualifying database, but keeping them publicly available for in-person review; or sealing of court records on a case-by-case basis, subject to procedural and substantive safeguards.
