Exploring Justice Scalia’s Legal Philosophy and Writing

Much of the commentary about Justice Scalia’s life and career has focused on his contributions to legal philosophy and on his powerful style of writing. Street Law has several resources that will help teachers expose these parts of his legacy.

ON ORIGINALISM

NPR’s All Things Considered discussed Justice Scalia’s influence on the constitutional philosophy of Originalism. Although it is often mischaracterized, Justice Scalia’s concern was not for the “original intent” of the framers, but rather the “original public meaning,” or how the people who ratified the Constitution understood it.

Street Law provides a lesson on constitutional interpretation, and explores Originalism and the Living Constitution approaches through a video of Justices Scalia and Breyer debating the topic.

• How do Judges Interpret the Constitution? – Lesson Plan

KEY OPINIONS

Several commentators weighed in with assessments of Justice Scalia’s most important majority and dissenting opinions:

• Highlights From Justice Antonin Scalia’s Opinions (The New York Times)
• Commentary: Scalia in history — a first draft (SCOTUSblog)
• The Pen as Sword: Justice Scalia in Dissent (The Wall Street Journal Law Blog)

Street Law has case summaries of many of these:

• D.C. v. Heller (2008): on the Second Amendment; Justice Scalia authored the majority opinion
• Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association (2011): on the First Amendment and violent video games; Justice Scalia authored the majority opinion
• Kyllo v. U.S. (2001): on the Fourth Amendment and remote heat-sensing searches; Justice Scalia authored the majority opinion
• Lawrence v. Texas (2003) and Obergefell v. Hodges and consolidated cases (2015): on gay rights and same-sex marriage; Justice Scalia dissented
• Roper v. Simmons – High School (2005): on the Eighth Amendment, execution of juveniles; Justices Scalia dissented