Also known as: sovereign powers · sovereignty
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The authority inherent in a sovereign entity to make and enforce laws within its territory.
Sierra Santos, the attorney general of a covered state, seeks to change voter registration rules without federal approval. She argues that the coverage formula relies on decades-old data and treats her state differently from others. The court applies equal sovereignty principles and invalidates the selective preclearance requirement.
Stella Shapiro operates a federally chartered bank in Maryland. State officials attempt to impose a tax on the bank's operations. The bank asserts that the state lacks authority to burden a federal instrumentality created under Congress's enumerated powers.
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Scott Summers, a high school senior, is charged under a federal statute for possessing a firearm near school grounds. He contends that the prohibition exceeds Congress's authority to regulate purely local, non-economic activity.
Sylvia Santos owns a bakery and faces criminal penalties for allowing employees to work more than sixty hours per week. She claims the state statute violates her liberty to contract under the Due Process Clause.
Sofia Stern, an Oregon resident, obtains a judgment against a nonresident defendant who owns land in Oregon. She attempts to enforce the judgment through a sheriff's sale of the property after service by publication.
Simone Sanders owns waterfront property targeted for a city redevelopment plan. The city condemns the land and transfers it to a private developer to promote economic growth.
Yes. State sovereign immunity bars private federal wage suits against nonconsenting states in state court when Congress legislates under its commerce power.
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No. Each state enjoys sovereign immunity from private suits brought against it in the courts of other states absent consent.
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No. Such disparate treatment violates principles of equal sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment and the Fifteenth Amendment's enforcement power when the data are outdated.
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The federal government lacks a general police power to regulate for health, safety, and welfare. That power belongs to the states.
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…premise was that the Constitution created a form of government under which "The people, not the government, possess the absolute sovereignty." The structure of the government dispersed power in reflection of the people's distrust of concentrated power, and of power itself at all levels. This form of government was "altogether…