2012 Hugh and Hazel Darling Foundation: Judicial Lecture on Constitutional Originalism

When jurists and scholars discuss originalism, they often have in mind the original meaning of the Constitution’s words and clauses. But originalism speaks not just of the meaning of the Constitution's textual provisions. It speaks also of the structure established by the Constitution, of the roles that each branch plays in that structure, and of the respect that the federal branches owe to the States and to the people. This lecture examines these structural features and presents an originalist perspective on the federal judge's role—particularly the circuit judge’s role—in the constitutional structure.