The Contract Clause: Revived or Revised?

Authors

Jean F. Reed

Abstract

In two recent cases, the Supreme Court of the United States held that state legislation had impaired preexisting contractual rights and nullified the state acts as violative of the contract clause. The author discusses the Court's most recent pronouncement, criticizing the decision for not applying the "new test" of its earlier decision and for misapplying the traditional analysis developed from the landmark decision of Home Building & Loan Association v. Blaisdell, 290 US. 398 (1934). With this revival of the long dormant contract clause, the author speculates as to whether it will be revised to protect individual rights in a modern setting.

Recommended Citation

Jean F. Reed, The Contract Clause: Revived or Revised?, 33 U. Mia. L. Rev. 667 (1979)
Available at: https://repository.law.miami.edu/umlr/vol33/iss3/5