Description
The second edition of The Law of American State Constitutions provides complete coverage of the legal doctrines surrounding, applying to, and arising from American state constitutions and their judicial interpretation. Drawing on examples from specific states, Professors Williams and Friedman analyze the nature and function of state constitutions in contrast to the federal Constitution, including rights, separation of powers, issues of interpretation, and the processes for amendment and revision. In this edition, Williams and Friedman focus on recent developments, including the state constitutional dimensions of same-sex marriage and the reaction of state courts to U.S. Supreme Court decision making.This edition of The Law of American State Constitutions remains an important analytical tool that explains the unique character and the range of interpretive approaches to these constitutions. It covers the structure of state governments under state constitutions as well as the distribution of powers among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Like the first edition, this edition presents a complete picture of state constitutional law and the attributes and features that make this body of law so distinctive.
Table of Contents
IntroductionI - State Constitutions in American Constitutional FederalismChapter 1. The Other American ConstitutionsChapter 2. The Pre-Federal "State" Constitutions: The Founding DecadeChapter 3. The Evolving American State ConstitutionsChapter 4. Federal Limits on State ConstitutionsII - Rights Guarantees under State Constitutions: The New Judicial FederalismChapter 5. The New Judicial FederalismChapter 6. Methodology in State Constitutional Rights InterpretationChapter 7. Lockstepping State Constitutional Rights with Federal Constitutional LawIII - Structure of State GovernmentChapter 8. State Constitutional Distribution of PowersChapter 9. The State Legislative BranchChapter 10. The State Judicial BranchChapter 11. The State Executive BranchIV - Unique Interpretation Issues in State Constitutional LawChapter 12. Interpreting State ConstitutionsV - State Constitutional Amendment and RevisionChapter 13. Amending and Revising State ConstitutionsChapter 14. Judicial Involvement in State Constitutional Amendment and RevisionBibliographical EssayIndex
