When Common Law Rights are Constitutionalized
Mike Rappaport
Lately, I have been thinking a good deal about how common law rights that have been placed in the Constitution should be interpreted. More on that in the future. Twelve years ago, I wrote a short essay about the subject. I still believe the position I tentatively adopted was the correct one. So I thought […]
Tariffs and Major Questions
Michael Ramsey
In Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump, decided Friday, the Supreme Court held that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not authorize the President to impose tariffs. Chief Justice Robert’s lead opinion (joined by Justices Gorsuch and Barrett) expressly invoked the major questions doctrine in finding that the statute did not clearly convey tariff […]
Cass Sunstein on Originalism and Justice Alito
Michael Ramsey
At his substack (Cass’s Substack), Cass Sunstein: Originalism’s Remarkable Triumph. From the introduction: Justice Samuel Alito has a new book coming out, and the subtitle is striking: An Originalist’s View of the Constitution, the Court, and the Country. See? It looks like an originalist manifesto. (And note well: An originalist’s view not just of the […]
Tara Leigh Grove: The Power To Impose Method
Michael Ramsey
Tara Leigh Grove (University of Texas School of Law) has posted The Power To Impose Method (136 Yale L.J. __ (2026)) (53 pages) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: Scholars have long debated methodological stare decisis: whether the Supreme Court should announce a single method, such as textualism or originalism, for interpreting all statutes and […]
Jeremy Christiansen: The Classical Legal Tradition as Our Tradition
Michael Ramsey
Jeremy Christiansen (Regent University School of Law) has posted The Classical Legal Tradition as Our Tradition (76 Catholic L. Rev., forthcoming) (62 pages) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: The last several years have seen a significant rise in scholarly and judicial interest in the classical legal tradition, in large measure due to the work of […]
HJLPP Symposium on Birthright Citizenship
Michael Ramsey
Recently published, the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy’s symposium issue (vol. 49, issue 2) on birthright citizenship, with an introduction by Judge Steven Menashi, long articles on the two sides of the debate by Keith Whittington and Ilan Wurman, and this shorter contribution by Gerard Magliocca: Without Domicile or Allegiance: Gypsies and Birthright […]
John Greil: Some Optimism About Protecting Sacred Sites
Michael Ramsey
John Greil (University of Texas at Austin School of Law) has posted Some Optimism About Protecting Sacred Sites (1 Independent Law Journal 126 (2026)) (27 pages) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: This Review examines Dana Lloyd’s Land Is Kin: Sovereignty, Religious Freedom, and Indigenous Sacred Sites (2024), a major intervention in Indigenous sacred-sites scholarship. In Lyng v. […]
Haley Proctor on the Party Presentation Principle
Michael Ramsey
At SCOTUSblog, Haley Proctor: Text, history, and party presentation. From the introduction: As has been observed by Rory Little at SCOTUSblog, the party presentation principle is on the rise at the Supreme Court. The principle stands for the simple idea that the parties control their case – what claims they bring, what defenses they raise, what arguments they […]
Andrew Willinger: Private Governance and Originalism
Michael Ramsey
Andrew Willinger (Georgia State University College of Law) has posted Private Governance and Originalism (79 Stan. L. Rev., forthcoming) (53 pages) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: Constitutional law increasingly privileges evidence of America’s historical regulatory tradition. In cases involving individual rights and structural provisions, courts examine whether modern laws subject to constitutional challenge resemble […]
Justice Scalia, Ten Years After
Michael Ramsey
Yesterday was the tenth anniversary of Justice Scalia’s death. His influence, over those ten years and continuing today, is surely more than he could have imagined. Via Keith Whittington at Volokh Conspiracy, video of the American Enterprise Institute’s two day event on Scalia’s legacy is here and here. Also at Volokh Conspiracy, Steven Calabresi: The […]