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Legal Issues

The Heritage Foundation works to restore the courts and legal system to their proper role, which is to protect individual liberty, equality under law, federalism, property rights, and free enterprise, and to enforce the constitutional limits on government.  To that end, our legal experts seek to reign in an activist judiciary which usurps power from the political branches, to reform our civil justice system, and to reverse the dangerous trend to criminalize conduct that is either beneficial or better regulated by administrative means.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Role of the Courts Policy in 2012 Elections Role of the Courts Policy in 2012 Elections

    Issues 2012 provides candidates for elected office the ability to quickly identify the key issues of the day and present clear policy recommendations, supported by facts, for addressing them. Read More.

  • Voter Integrity Policy in 2012 Elections Voter Integrity Policy in 2012 Elections

    Issues 2012 provides candidates for elected office the ability to quickly identify the key issues of the day and present clear policy recommendations, supported by facts, for addressing them. Read More.

Our Research & Offerings on Legal Issues
  • Most Recent
  • Most Popular
  • Reports
  • The Basics
  • Issue Brief posted May 22, 2012 by Andrew Grossman Dismissing Padilla v. Yoo: A Glass Half Empty?

    The Ninth Circuit correctly dismissed Jose Padilla’s lawsuit against John Yoo, the former Department of Justice official who provided key analysis of legal questions arising from the war on terrorism. But being the traditionally liberal and oft-reversed Ninth Circuit, the court could not leave well enough alone and issued an…

  • Issue Brief posted May 10, 2012 by Paul Larkin The FOCUS Act Hearing: Unpersuasive Criticisms and Tacit Admissions

    Thankfully, the law sometimes reflects common sense. Here’s an example: Innocent people ordinarily do not remain silent when accused of having committed a crime or some other misconduct. As the result, it is reasonable to infer that such an accusation is true if a person does not deny it. In…

  • Legal Memorandum posted May 8, 2012 by Paul Larkin The FOCUS Act and Environmentalism

    Abstract: With regard to the Lacey Act, The Heritage Foundation and the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) can agree on one point: The act should be enforced through the civil justice system or the administrative process. In a recent paper, however, the UCS has…

  • Issue Brief posted May 7, 2012 by Paul Larkin The FOCUS Act and Federal Law Enforcement

    An article by Jon Adler at the Police: The Law Enforcement Magazine Website,[1] written on behalf of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA), is quite critical of the recently introduced Freedom from Over-Criminalization and Unjust Seizures (FOCUS) Act of 2012. The thrust of the article is that…

  • Issue Brief on May 7, 2012 The Lacey Act: From Conservation to Criminalization

    How did a law originally enacted to target poaching of migratory birds evolve to authorize an armed raid of a guitar factory in search of wooden veneers imported without the proper paperwork? The Lacey Act was the first federal wildlife conservation statute, narrowly targeted at the interstate sale in poached…

  • Backgrounder posted March 29, 2012 by David Muhlhausen, Ph.D., Christina Villegas Violence Against Women Act: Reauthorization Fundamentally Flawed

    Abstract: Despite the fact that each state has statutes that punish domestic violence, the federal government intervened in 1994 with the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). The Senate is now expected to consider the newest reauthorization of the act—S. 1925—which includes radical changes that…

  • Backgrounder posted March 22, 2012 by Robert Alt, Edmund Haislmaier The Obamacare Challenge: The Questions Before the Supreme Court and Their Portents for Congress

    Abstract: Next week, the Supreme Court will hear challenges to Obamacare (the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) centered on the constitutionality of the legislation’s individual mandate and Medicaid expansion. From a legal perspective, the Court’s decision will…

  • Issue Brief posted March 20, 2012 by Charles Stimson, Elizabeth Garvey Juvenile Life Sentences: Constitutionality of Life Without Parole for Teenage Murderers

    On Tuesday, March 20, the Supreme Court hears oral argument in two cases involving the constitutionality of sentences of life without parole (LWOP) for teenage murderers. The real issue before the Court is this: Will the Court again “find” or “invent” a heretofore undiscovered constitutional prohibition and thus strike an…

  • Issue Brief posted March 19, 2012 by Hans von Spakovsky Lessons from the Voter ID Experience in Georgia

    The latest data compiled by the Secretary of State of Georgia, Brian Kemp, about the state’s experience with voter ID once again shows that the claims by opponents of voter ID are wrong. Contrary to their assertions that there are large numbers of American voters without…

  • Legal Memorandum posted March 19, 2012 by Nathaniel Stewart Brief Observations: A Review of Obamacare Briefs and the Original Meaning of the Constitution

    Abstract: The heart of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, popularly known as “Obamacare,” is an unprecedented mandate that individuals purchase health insurance. The briefs of the parties challenging Obamacare and their supporting amici…

View All
Find more work on Legal Issues
  • Legal Memorandum posted February 21, 2001 by Todd Gaziano The Use and Abuse of Executive Orders and Other Presidential Directives

    In recent years, there has been renewed interest in the proper use and possible abuse of executive orders and other presidential directives. Many citizens and lawmakers expressed concern over the content and scope of several of President Bill Clinton's executive orders and land proclamations. Congress responded with hearings and the consideration of several bills designed to…

  • Issue Brief posted May 22, 2012 by Andrew Grossman Dismissing Padilla v. Yoo: A Glass Half Empty?

    The Ninth Circuit correctly dismissed Jose Padilla’s lawsuit against John Yoo, the former Department of Justice official who provided key analysis of legal questions arising from the war on terrorism. But being the traditionally liberal and oft-reversed Ninth Circuit, the court could not leave well enough alone and issued an…

  • Backgrounder posted March 22, 2012 by Robert Alt, Edmund Haislmaier The Obamacare Challenge: The Questions Before the Supreme Court and Their Portents for Congress

    Abstract: Next week, the Supreme Court will hear challenges to Obamacare (the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) centered on the constitutionality of the legislation’s individual mandate and Medicaid expansion. From a legal perspective, the Court’s decision will…

  • Lecture posted May 5, 2004 by The Honorable Frank Williams Abraham Lincoln and Civil Liberties in Wartime

    This month, several individuals detained as "enemy combatants" will make their appeals for freedom to the highest court in the land. Perhaps now, more than any other time in recent memory, the eyes of the world are intensely focused…

  • Legal Memorandum posted September 13, 2010 by Charles Stimson Legalizing Marijuana: Why Citizens Should Just Say No

    Abstract: This November, California voters will consider a ballot initiative, the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010. Scientific research is clear that marijuana is addictive and that its use significantly impairs bodily and mental functions. Even…

  • Legal Memorandum posted March 19, 2012 by Nathaniel Stewart Brief Observations: A Review of Obamacare Briefs and the Original Meaning of the Constitution

    Abstract: The heart of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, popularly known as “Obamacare,” is an unprecedented mandate that individuals purchase health insurance. The briefs of the parties challenging Obamacare and their supporting amici…

  • Backgrounder posted June 22, 2011 by Ray Walser, Ph.D., Jena Baker McNeill, Jessica Zuckerman The Human Tragedy of Illegal Immigration: Greater Efforts Needed to Combat Smuggling and Violence

    Abstract: Over the past 10 years, traversing the U.S.–Mexico border illegally has become increasingly dangerous for would-be immigrants. Illegal immigrants face kidnapping, murder, and rape at the hands of violent drug cartels and ever more ruthless human smugglers. Crossing treacherous desert areas exposes the…

  • Legal Memorandum posted March 1, 2012 by Gerard V. Bradley Retribution and Overcriminalization

    Abstract: From the ever-expanding number of federal criminal laws to prison sentences that are too numerous or too long, there are many promising bases for criticizing overcriminalization. One such basis, however, has yet to be fully considered: the fact that too many criminal offenses today are malum prohibitumoffenses—that is, they…

  • Lecture posted March 4, 1993 by Russell Kirk The Meaning of Justice

    The word "justice" is on everyone's lips nowadays, and may signify almost anything. We hear the cry "Peace and Justice!" from folk who would destroy existing societies with fire and sword. Other folk fancy that perfect justice might readily be obtained by certain financial rearrangements -- as if anything in this world ever could be…

  • Backgrounder posted March 29, 2012 by David Muhlhausen, Ph.D., Christina Villegas Violence Against Women Act: Reauthorization Fundamentally Flawed

    Abstract: Despite the fact that each state has statutes that punish domestic violence, the federal government intervened in 1994 with the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). The Senate is now expected to consider the newest reauthorization of the act—S. 1925—which includes radical changes that…

Find more work on Legal Issues
  • Issue Brief posted May 22, 2012 by Andrew Grossman Dismissing Padilla v. Yoo: A Glass Half Empty?

    The Ninth Circuit correctly dismissed Jose Padilla’s lawsuit against John Yoo, the former Department of Justice official who provided key analysis of legal questions arising from the war on terrorism. But being the traditionally liberal and oft-reversed Ninth Circuit, the court could not leave well enough alone and issued an…

  • Issue Brief posted May 10, 2012 by Paul Larkin The FOCUS Act Hearing: Unpersuasive Criticisms and Tacit Admissions

    Thankfully, the law sometimes reflects common sense. Here’s an example: Innocent people ordinarily do not remain silent when accused of having committed a crime or some other misconduct. As the result, it is reasonable to infer that such an accusation is true if a person does not deny it. In…

  • Legal Memorandum posted May 8, 2012 by Paul Larkin The FOCUS Act and Environmentalism

    Abstract: With regard to the Lacey Act, The Heritage Foundation and the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) can agree on one point: The act should be enforced through the civil justice system or the administrative process. In a recent paper, however, the UCS has…

  • Issue Brief posted May 7, 2012 by Paul Larkin The FOCUS Act and Federal Law Enforcement

    An article by Jon Adler at the Police: The Law Enforcement Magazine Website,[1] written on behalf of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA), is quite critical of the recently introduced Freedom from Over-Criminalization and Unjust Seizures (FOCUS) Act of 2012. The thrust of the article is that…

  • Issue Brief on May 7, 2012 The Lacey Act: From Conservation to Criminalization

    How did a law originally enacted to target poaching of migratory birds evolve to authorize an armed raid of a guitar factory in search of wooden veneers imported without the proper paperwork? The Lacey Act was the first federal wildlife conservation statute, narrowly targeted at the interstate sale in poached…

  • Backgrounder posted March 29, 2012 by David Muhlhausen, Ph.D., Christina Villegas Violence Against Women Act: Reauthorization Fundamentally Flawed

    Abstract: Despite the fact that each state has statutes that punish domestic violence, the federal government intervened in 1994 with the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). The Senate is now expected to consider the newest reauthorization of the act—S. 1925—which includes radical changes that…

  • Backgrounder posted March 22, 2012 by Robert Alt, Edmund Haislmaier The Obamacare Challenge: The Questions Before the Supreme Court and Their Portents for Congress

    Abstract: Next week, the Supreme Court will hear challenges to Obamacare (the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) centered on the constitutionality of the legislation’s individual mandate and Medicaid expansion. From a legal perspective, the Court’s decision will…

  • Issue Brief posted March 20, 2012 by Charles Stimson, Elizabeth Garvey Juvenile Life Sentences: Constitutionality of Life Without Parole for Teenage Murderers

    On Tuesday, March 20, the Supreme Court hears oral argument in two cases involving the constitutionality of sentences of life without parole (LWOP) for teenage murderers. The real issue before the Court is this: Will the Court again “find” or “invent” a heretofore undiscovered constitutional prohibition and thus strike an…

  • Issue Brief posted March 19, 2012 by Hans von Spakovsky Lessons from the Voter ID Experience in Georgia

    The latest data compiled by the Secretary of State of Georgia, Brian Kemp, about the state’s experience with voter ID once again shows that the claims by opponents of voter ID are wrong. Contrary to their assertions that there are large numbers of American voters without…

  • Legal Memorandum posted March 19, 2012 by Nathaniel Stewart Brief Observations: A Review of Obamacare Briefs and the Original Meaning of the Constitution

    Abstract: The heart of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, popularly known as “Obamacare,” is an unprecedented mandate that individuals purchase health insurance. The briefs of the parties challenging Obamacare and their supporting amici…

View All
Find more work on Legal Issues
  • Legal Memorandum on December 9, 2009 Why the Personal Mandate to Buy Health Insurance Is Unprecedented and Unconstitutional
  • Legal Memorandum on February 17, 2010 Citizens United and the Restoration of the First Amendment
  • Lecture on February 24, 2010 Keeping a Republic: Overcoming the Corrupted Judiciary
Find more work on Legal Issues
Other Topics Related to Legal Issues
  • Crime
  • Elections
  • Rule of Law
Experts on Legal Issues
  • Robert Alt img Robert Alt

    Director, Rule of Law Programs and Senior Legal Fellow

  • Andrew Grossman img Andrew Grossman

    Visiting Fellow

  • Todd Gaziano img Todd Gaziano

    Director, Center for Legal & Judicial Studies

  • Edwin Meese III img Edwin Meese III

    Ronald Reagan Distinguished Fellow in Public Policy and Chairman of the Center for Legal and Judicial Studies

  • Charles Stimson img Charles Stimson

    Chief of Staff and Senior Legal Fellow

  • Hans von Spakovsky img Hans von Spakovsky

    Senior Legal Fellow / Manager, Civil Justice Reform Initiative

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  • Backgrounder posted May 24, 2012 by Walter Lohman, Robert Warshaw U.S. Policy on Asia: A New Diplomatic Framework Needed
  • Special Report posted June 1, 2010 by Brian Riedl Federal Spending Trends and Federal Budget Trends
  • Backgrounder posted September 13, 2011 by Robert Rector, Rachel Sheffield Understanding Poverty in the United States: Poverty USA
  • Backgrounder posted March 1, 2006 by Tim Kane, Ph.D., Kirk Johnson, Ph.D. The Real Problem with Immigration... and the Real Solution
  • Issue Brief posted May 22, 2012 by Baker Spring Centralizing Management of the Military Health System
  • Backgrounder posted June 1, 2004 by Arthur Laffer The Laffer Curve: Past, Present, and Future
  • Backgrounder posted March 15, 2005 by Daniel Mitchell, Ph.D. The Impact of Government Spending on Economic Growth
  • WebMemo posted April 2, 2004 by Carrie Donovan The Law of the Sea Treaty
  • Issue Brief posted May 23, 2012 by James Sherk Extend Whistle-Blower Protections to Union Employees
  • Backgrounder posted January 5, 2004 by Robert Rector, Kirk Johnson, Ph.D. Understanding Poverty in America
  • Blog Post on Wednesday, May 30, 2012 Pakistan Takes Short-sighted Approach to Relations with the U.S.
  • Blog Post on Wednesday, May 30, 2012 Even After Walker Reforms, Wisconsin Public Workers Still Overpaid
  • Blog Post on Wednesday, May 30, 2012 ExxonMobil Promotes Administration's Effort to Nationalize Education
  • Blog Post on Wednesday, May 30, 2012 More States Receive Strings-Attached NCLB Waivers
  • America at Risk Memo posted May 30, 2012 by Edwin Feulner, Ph.D. Protecting the American Dream: Sustain the Military and Armed Forces
  • Blog Post on Wednesday, May 30, 2012 Isn’t It Time to Outlaw Gendercide?
  • Blog Post on Wednesday, May 30, 2012 Obama Administration Can No Longer Hide Behind the U.N.’s Failed Efforts in Syria
  • Blog Post on Wednesday, May 30, 2012 Cuban Dictator’s Daughter Predictably Bashes U.S., Endorses Obama
  • Blog Post on Wednesday, May 30, 2012 Family Fact of the Week: Honoring Military Members and Their Families
  • Blog Post on Wednesday, May 30, 2012 More Than Just a Statue: Ronald Reagan's Legacy in Georgia
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  • May 31
    Event on Thursday, May 31, 2012 The Common Defense: What It Means to Conservatives

    The Preamble of the Constitution gives paramount importance to the federal government to “provide for the common defense.” Yet, there is a growing misconception that — Read more

    Attend in Person Watch Online

  • May 31
    Event on Thursday, May 31, 2012 Castro's Secrets: The CIA and Cuba's Intelligence Machine

    Co-sponsored by — Read more

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  • May 31
    Event on Thursday, May 31, 2012 Understanding the Smith-Mundt Modernization Act

    Controversy has swirled around the Smith-Mundt Modernization Act since it passed mark-up as an amendment to the House version of the National Defense Authorization Act — Read more

    Attend in Person Watch Online

  • Jun 07
    Event on Thursday, June 07, 2012 Corporate Social Responsibility: Risk to American Business

    Featuring Andrew W. Markley, J.D. Chair and Professor, Department — Read more

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  • Jun 07
    Event on Thursday, June 07, 2012 Age of Delirium

    Join us for this special screening and a conversation with David Satter, author of Age of Delirium, the book — Read more

    Attend in Person Watch Online

  • Jun 12
    Event on Tuesday, June 12, 2012 ''Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!''

    On June 12, 1987, President Ronald Reagan delivered remarks at the Brandenburg Gate in West Berlin – a city — Read more

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  • Jun 13
    Event on Wednesday, June 13, 2012 Export Control Reform: What's Next

    Our present system of export controls is hampering our trade, our defense industrial base, and our national security. The right kind of modernization will permit — Read more

    Attend in Person Watch Online

  • Jun 13
    Event on Wednesday, June 13, 2012 The 10th Anniversary of the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty Withdrawal

    The Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty of 1972 prohibited the United States and the Soviet Union from testing or deploying national missile defense systems. Three months after — Read more

    Attend in Person Watch Online

  • Jun 15
    Event on Friday, June 15, 2012 Political Woman: The Big Little Life of Jeane Kirkpatrick

    Jeane Kirkpatrick became an iconic figure in the 1980s as Ronald Reagan’s United Nations Ambassador and the most forceful — Read more

    Attend in Person Watch Online

  • Jun 19
    Event on Tuesday, June 19, 2012 Lost Causes: The Retreat from Classical Liberalism

    For most of his professional career as a pre-eminent development economist teaching at Oxford and University College, Deepak Lal — Read more

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  • Blog Post on 5/30/2012 6:38:35 PM Pakistan Takes Short-sighted Approach to Relations with the U.S.
  • Blog Post on 5/30/2012 1:00:19 PM Even After Walker Reforms, Wisconsin Public Workers Still Overpaid
  • Blog Post on 5/30/2012 12:18:29 PM ExxonMobil Promotes Administration's Effort to Nationalize Education
  • Blog Post on 5/30/2012 12:00:43 PM More States Receive Strings-Attached NCLB Waivers
  • Blog Post on 5/30/2012 11:03:39 AM Isn’t It Time to Outlaw Gendercide?
  • Blog Post on 5/30/2012 10:30:10 AM Obama Administration Can No Longer Hide Behind the U.N.’s Failed Efforts in Syria
  • Blog Post on 5/30/2012 9:56:55 AM Cuban Dictator’s Daughter Predictably Bashes U.S., Endorses Obama
  • Blog Post on 5/30/2012 8:30:43 AM Family Fact of the Week: Honoring Military Members and Their Families
  • Blog Post on 5/30/2012 7:38:02 AM More Than Just a Statue: Ronald Reagan's Legacy in Georgia
  • Blog Post on 5/30/2012 6:30:02 AM Wedded to the Truth
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