Meyer, Pierce, and the Formation of Persons
Abstract
This essay, written for a conference marking the centennial of the Supreme Court’s decisions in Meyer v. Nebraska (1923) and Pierce v. Society of Sisters (1925), suggests that both the ongoing importance and the frustrating elusiveness of these decisions reflect the fact that questions of the formation of persons– as contrasted with matters of the expression or manifestation of personhood– are of crucial importance in the protection of liberty and yet are difficult to grasp and address within constitutional and liberal premises. In this predicament, the decisions dealt with the problem of formation of personhood by embracing what may be the only available solution within the liberal and American constitutional system– namely, a sort of anti-monopoly principle.
Document Type
Article
Year
2025
Publication Title
Journal of Contemporary Legal Issues
Volume
26
Number
1
Starting Page
55
Digital USD Citation
Smith, Steven Douglas, "Meyer, Pierce, and the Formation of Persons" (2025). Faculty Scholarship. 196.
https://digital.sandiego.edu/law_fac_works/196