The Promise and Limits of State Constitutions

For much of the past century, the U.S. Supreme Court was the primary guardian of civil rights and liberties. In many areas the Court is now backing away from that role, and legal scholars and citizens alike are scrambling to understand this new reality. 

This process has ushered in a new focus on state constitutions and the courts that interpret them. Fifty separate state constitutions provide numerous rights that do not appear in the federal constitution, and those constitutions are understudied.

Join the Brennan Center for Justice, State Court Report, and the New York University Law Review for a live two-day event on February 8 and 9 at NYU School of Law’s Vanderbilt Hall. Judges, academics, and lawyers will dive into the nuances and importance of state constitutional law. As Justice William J. Brennan Jr. once wrote, state courts “ought to be the guardians of our liberties.” It’s time to better understand them. 

Produced in partnership with State Court Report and NYU Law Review

CLE Supporting Materials

This event has been approved for nine New York State CLE credits in the category of Areas of Professional Practice. The credit is both transitional and non-transitional; it is appropriate for both experienced and newly admitted attorneys.

If you are seeking CLE credit for this event, please see the following supporting materials:

• Kate Berry, “How Judicial Elections Impact Criminal Cases,” Brennan Center for Justice
• Jessica Bulman-Pozen and Miriam Seifter, “Countering the New Election Subversion: The Democracy Principle and the Role of State Courts,” Wisconsin Law Review
• Center for Reproductive Rights, State Constitutions and Abortion Rights
• Marcus Alexander Gadson, “Theseus in the Labyrinth: How State Constitutions Can Slay the Procedural Minotaur,” Washington Law Review
• Loretta H. Rush and Marie Forney Miller, “A Constellation of Constitutions: Discovering and Embracing State Constitutions as Guardians of Civil Liberties,” Albany Law Review

Optional CLE Materials

• Alicia Bannon, “New Mexico Supreme Court Hints at a Big Constitutional Change,” State Court Report
• Alicia Bannon, “Protecting Against Extreme Punishments,” State Court Report
• Zach Clopton, “Abortion and Original Jurisdiction,” State Court Report
• Eric Holder, “State Judges Must Guard Their Independence,” State Court Report
• Yurij Rudensky, “Status of Partisan Gerrymandering Litigation in State Courts,” State Court Report
• Yurij Rudensky and Sonali Seth, “Washington Supreme Court Unanimously Upholds the State’s Voting Rights Act,” State Court Report
• Mary Ziegler, “Trends to Watch in State Abortion Litigation,” State Court Report

Additional Materials

• Clint Bolick, “Principles of State Constitutional Interpretation,” Arizona State Law Journal
• Jessica Bulman-Pozen and Miriam Seifter, “The Democracy Principle in State Constitutions,” Michigan Law Review
• Jessica Bulman-Pozen and Miriam Seifter, “State Constitutional Rights and Democratic Proportionality,” Columbia Law Review
• Mabel Felix, Laurie Sobel, and Alina Salganicoff, “Addressing Abortion Access through State Ballot Initiatives,” KFF
• Holcomb v. Bray (Ind. 2022)
• Loretta H. Rush and Marie Forney Miller, “Cultivating State Constitutional Law to Form a More Perfect Union—Indiana’s Story,” Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics, and Public Policy
• State Democracy Research Initiative, The Democracy Principle
• State v. Mixton (Ariz. 2021)
• Text of Florida Proposed State Constitutional Amendment on Abortion