Explores the important field of state constitutional law. The course will consider the politics of state courts of last resort and the role that those tribunals play in the protection of individual rights and the definition of the American political process. Of importance will be examination of the ways that state courts adjudicate state constitutional claims differently from the United States Supreme Court on a variety of subject-matter issues including abortion, criminal due process, and privacy, as well as structural issues of state power and governmental organization.