Finding liberty's refuge : balancing the states and the individual on the O'Connor court

Abstract

This paper examines the tension between states' rights and rights of the individual in the jurisprudence of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Through analysis of O'Connor's personal biography and a series of opinions written over her tenure on the Supreme Court, I find that O'Connor reached an incremental balance between the sometimes conflicting goals of protecting the rights of the states and individuals, resulting in a unique rights-based approach to federalism.