Just about one year ago, I was appointed to the Constitutional Reform Committee of Jamaica. Our principal task is to advise the Government of Jamaica on writing and enacting a new constitution. We have met almost weekly since March 2023, with over 40 Committee meetings and 80 public engagements across the country. 

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Earlier this month, we submitted our first Report to the Cabinet. We later met with the Prime Minister and his team to discuss our recommendations for a new republican constitution for Jamaica. The Report has been tabled in Parliament and is now available. Drafting instructions are now being written for the reform bill to be introduced in Parliament. This is an enormous victory on behalf of the people of Jamaica – the country where my parents met and where my great-great-grandfather was born.

Prior to becoming a Justice on the U.S. Supreme Court, the late Antonin Scalia was a law professor from 1977 to 1982 at the University of Chicago. In 1979, then-Professor Scalia spoke on a panel about the prospects for a National Constitutional Convention. He was joined by three scholars: Paul Bator, Harvard University; Walter Berns, American Enterprise Institute; and Gerald Gunther, Stanford University. It is worth watching in full, if you have an interest in Article V. The full video is linked below.

In her new book What Women Represent, Erica Rayment shows that women's rights and interests fare better in law and public policy when women are well represented in the legislature. This key finding could help build momentum for gender parity in parliaments around the world.

Last week, the German Basic Law turned 75 years old. Enacted in 1949, the Basic Law features one of the world's most revered constitutional provisions: “Human dignity shall be inviolable,” codified in Article 1(1). 

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The Basic Law was written by a 65-member Parliamentary Council. Four of its members were women: Friederike Nadig, Elisabeth Selbert, Helene Weber, and Helene Wessel. This quartet of women had a crucial role, in particular, in the Basic Law's declaration of equal rights for all.

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Here, below, are three photos of the Parliamentary Council. The first captures the Council's final meeting on May 23, 1949, as it approves the new constitution. The second shows Konrad Adenauer, president of the Council, signing the Basic Law. The third features the quartet.

Registration is now open for the 3rd Graduate Conference on Constitutional Change at the University of Texas at Austin, to be held on December 9-11, 2024. Graduate students of all levels are welcome. More details here. Applicants will be notified on a rolling basis.

How do European countries protect the rights of nature, and are they doing enough? The new book Rights of Nature in Europe: Encounters and Visions examines the legal and political strategies used in Europe to advance ecological preservation, animal rights, and environmental sustainability.

Times Higher Education has released its law school rankings for 2024. Here are the top 5 Canadian law schools: 

1. University of Toronto

2. McGill University

3. University of British Columbia

4. University of Ottawa

5. Université de Montréal

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If I were applying to study law in Canada today, I would have a hard time choosing between the University of Ottawa and the Université de Montréal – the two best schools for constitutional studies.

The editors of the Oxford Series in Comparative Constitutionalism will host a discussion and Q&A for scholars interested in publishing books in comparative constitutionalism. All are welcome! Thursday, June 6, 2024. 11h00 NYC | 16h00 London | 17h00 Paris

Coloradans will vote in November on a constitutional amendment to codify the right to abortion in their state constitution. If approved, the amendment would also require health insurance plans to cover abortion care services for state and local government employees as well as enrollees in state and local government insurance programs. There is a high bar to ratify this amendment: 55% of Coloradans must vote in favor.

The next edition of our virtual course on challenges to democracy and constitutionalism in the Americas will feature Colombia. All are welcome! Tuesday, May 28, at 8pm Toronto/NYC time.

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To register for this free seminar, please email Jorge Madrazo at madrazojorge@yahoo.com. This virtual course is co-sponsored by the UNAM School of Law, UNAM San Antonio, UNAM PAME, the Instituto Iberoamericano de Derecho Constitucional, and the International Forum on the Future of Constitutionalism.

I enjoyed reading The Constitution of the War on Drugs, published last month. Written by David Pozen, it is an eye-opening analysis of the failure of the “war on drugs” in the United States. The book also illuminates the role of the U.S. Constitution in accelerating and exacerbating the failure of the war on drugs. In addition, this outstanding book – available in open access – shines comparative light on the challenges of social policy-making and constitutional reform in the United States and the world.

Portugal and Spain were once resistant to international law and its associated commitments to regional integration and multilateral coordination. Today, however, both countries fully embrace the tenets of international law. What explains the shift? The answer, according to this new chapter, is that both countries adopted new constitutions (Portugal in 1976 and Spain in 1978) that incorporated international law, leading to a process described in the chapter as “internationalization by democratization.”

In this festive graduation season, I recall my graduation from Yale University in May 2000. Our featured speaker was Bob Woodward, winner the Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the Watergate affair. In his address, he urged graduates not to “make other peoples' mistakes,” a reference to catastrophic failures of judgment by Presidents Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton. Here, below, is a photo from my graduation day, twenty-four years ago this month, as I received my degree in Political Science.

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Congratulations to all graduates and their loved ones!