Con Final

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Seton Hall University *

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3210

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Law

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Jan 9, 2024

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docx

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Uploaded by EarlHerring2752

Fitzgerald 1 Fitzgerald, Taiyonna Professor Pallitto Constitutional Law 15 December 2023 Constitutional Law Final ESSAY QUESTION: In our democracy, a common fear of those well-versed in politics is “super-legislature”. Excessive government interference has proven time and time again to disrupt how we operate as a society on a local level. In state matters, states don’t want the courts using their jurisdiction to scrutinize their legislatures on their local matters. In the early stages of substantive due process, many states found it distasteful because of the lack of control they would have in establishing certain legislatures. There are several cases in which the states overstep their authority to legislate based on the constitutionality of the laws they wish to enforce and instill. For example, in Lochner v. New York (1905), New York produced a Bakeshop Act that prohibited the number of hours per day and week that could be worked. Lochner appealed against his second fine for allowing his employees to exceed these set numbers. Upon appeal, the courts found that the Act was unconstitutional in that it violated the due process clause, breached freedom of contract, and exceeded the state's reach. In Fletcher v. Peck (1810), the state produced a land grant, which granted John Peck land. Peck then sold the land to Robert Fletcher. When the states voided the original grant with the legislature and attempted to retrieve the land from Fletcher, Fletcher argued that Peck never had proper title to sell, and Peck argued that the states had no right to go

Fitzgerald 2 back on their grant. The courts agreed with Peck and decided that it was an unconstitutional breach of contract for the states to deny Peck proper claim to the land. In these cases, the courts needed to step in to ensure constitutionality at a time when states were using their power to continue to oppress people and suppress their rights. In modern times, I think it is essential that the courts continue to intervene and preserve the Constitution, especially in a time of living constitutionalism. For example, there are states like Florida attempting to eliminate essential elements of learning from the public schooling curriculum. It is important to understand that while we are progressing to a deformed version of equality, there are still states that wish to suppress individuals economically, socially, and physically. In understanding issues of poverty, discrimination, and inequity in healthcare for centuries, there is no reason for someone to not be able to afford healthcare in this century. The point is, that substantive due process is necessary because states who are governed by individuals still attempting to implement laws on discrimination, suppression, and oppression, are not allowed to do so. While this is very opinionated, I feel as though we are slipping into an age of modern Jim Crow and the enforcement of the rights laid out in our Constitutional text and governed by our High Courts will prevent this from becoming the new norm. SHORT ANSWERS: A. Trace the rise and fall of the contracts clause from Fletcher v. Peck to Charles River Bridge and say why you think it faded in importance. a. In Fletcher v. Peck, land grants were distributed to certain companies with the impression the land would be owned by the individuals with ownership of those

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