Neal E. Devins publications | Faculty Author Profiles | William & Mary Law School

Skip to main content

Neal E. Devins

Sandra Day O'Connor Professor of Law and Professor of Government

Areas of Specialization

Civil Rights Law; Law and Politics; Constitutional Law

Representative Professional Activities and Achievements

Joined the faculty in 1987. Served as Assistant General Counsel for the U. S. Commission on Civil Rights and Project Director for the Vanderbilt Institute for Public Policy Studies.

Author of Shaping Constitutional Values: The Supreme Court, Elected Government and the Abortion Dispute and articles in the Chicago, Columbia, Stanford, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Virginia, California, William & Mary, and Yale law reviews. Co-author of Political Dynamics of Constitutional Law, The Democratic Constitution, and The Company They Keep: How Partisan Divisions Came to the Supreme Court. Editor of the book series, Constitutional Conflicts, published by Duke U. Press.

Publications from 2026 2026

The Executive's Takeover of Independent Agencies: How Institutional Design Gave Way to Political Will, Neal Devins

(53 Pepperdine Law Review 441-484 (2026))

Publications from 2023 2023

The Independent Agency Myth, Neal Devins and David E. Lewis

(108 Cornell Law Review 1305-1374 (2023))

Publications from 2021 2021

Weaponizing En Banc, Neal Devins and Allison Orr Larsen

(96 New York University Law Review 1373-1437 (2021))

Publications from 2019 2019

State Constitutionalism in the Age of Party Polarization, Neal Devins

(71 Rutgers University Law Review 1129-1176 (2019))

Publications from 2018 2018

Congress, the Courts, and Party Polarization: Why Congress Rarely Checks the President and Why the Courts Should Not Take Congress’s Place, Neal Devins

(21 Chapman Law Review 55-81 (2018))

Publications from 2017 2017

Split Definitive: How Party Polarization Turned the Supreme Court Into a Partisan Court, Neal Devins and Lawrence Baum

(2016 Supreme Court Review 301-366 (2017))

The Vanishing Common Law Judge, Neal Devins and David Klein

(165 University of Pennsylvania Law Review 595-631 (2017))

Publications from 2016 2016

Rethinking Judicial Minimalism: Abortion Politics, Party Polarization, and the Consequences of Returning the Constitution to Elected Government, Neal Devins

(69 Vanderbilt Law Review 935-990 (2016))

Publications from 2015 2015

Measuring Party Polarization in Congress: Lessons from Congressional Participation in Amicus Curiae, Neal Devins

(65 Case Western Law Review 933-1026 (2015))

Fifty States, Fifty Attorneys General, and Fifty Approaches to the Duty To Defend, Neal Devins and Saikrishna B. Prakash

(124 Yale Law Journal 2100-2187 (2015))

Publications from 2013 2013

Reverse Advisory Opinions, Neal Devins and Saikrishna B. Prakash

(80 University of Chicago Law Review 859-894 (2013))

Publications from 2012 2012

Party Polarization and Judicial Review: Lessons from the Affordable Care Act, Neal Devins

(106 Northwestern University Law Review 1821-1848 (2012))

Why Congress Did Not Think About the Constitution When Enacting the Affordable Care Act, Neal Devins

(106 Northwestern University Law Review Colloquy 261-282 (2012))

The Indefensible Duty to Defend, Neal Devins and Saikrishna B. Prakash

(112 Columbia Law Review 507-577 (2012))

Publications from 2011 2011

Party Polarization and Congressional Committee Consideration of Constitutional Questions, Neal Devins

(105 Northwestern University Law Review 737-788 (2011))

Same-Sex Marriage and the New Judicial Federalism: Why State Courts Should Not Consider Out-of-State Backlash, Neal Devins

(New Frontiers of State Constitutional Law 81-102 (James A. Gardner & Jim Rossi eds., 2011))

Publications from 2010 2010

How State Supreme Courts Take Consequences Into Account: Toward a State-Centered Understanding of State Constitutionalism, Neal Devins

(62 Stanford Law Review 1629-1693 (2010))

Talk Loudly and Carry a Small Stick: The Supreme Court and Enemy Combatants, Neal Devins

(12 University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law 491-576 (2010))

The Supreme Court, Social Psychology, and Group Formation, Neal Devins and William Federspiel

(The Psychology of Judicial Decision Making 85-100 (David Klein & Greg Mitchell eds., 2010))

Public Opinion and State Supreme Courts, Neal Devins and Nicole Mansker

(13 University of Pennsylvania Journal of Consitutional Law 455-509 (2010))

Publications from 2009 2009

How Planned Parenthood v. Casey (Pretty Much) Settled the Abortion Wars, Neal Devins

(118 Yale Law Journal 1318-1354 (2009))

Presidential Unilateralism and Political Polarization: Why Today's Congress Lacks the Will and the Way to Stop Presidential Initiatives, Neal Devins

(45 Williamette Law Review 395-415 (2009))

The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same, Neal Devins

(12 Green Bag 2nd 137-151 (2009))

Publications from 2008 2008

Congressional Responses to Judicial Decisions, Neal Devins

(Encyclopedia of the Supreme Court 400-403 (Mark Graber et al. eds., Gale MacMillan 2008))

Ideological Cohesion and Precedent (Or Why the Court Only Cares About Precedent When Most Justices Agree With Each Other), Neal Devins

(86 North Carolina Law Review 1399-1442 (2008))

Not-So-Independent Agencies: Party Polarization and the Limits of Institutional Design, Neal Devins and David E. Lewis

(88 Boston University Law Review 459-498 (2008))

Publications from 2007 2007

Congress, the Supreme Court, and Enemy Combatants: How Lawmakers Buoyed Judicial Supremacy by Placing Limits on Federal Court Jurisdiction, Neal Devins

(91 Minnesota Law Review 1562-1595 (2007))

Constitutional Avoidance and the Roberts Court, Neal Devins

(32 Univeristy of Dayton Law Review 339-347 (2007))

How Congress Paved the Way for the Rehnquist Court's Federalism Revival: Lessons from the Federal Partial Birth Abortion Ban, Neal Devins

(21 St. John's Journal of Legal Commentary 461-471 (2007))

Politique partisane et indépendence judiciare, Neal Devins

(7 Politique Américaine 103-121 (2007))

The D'Oh! of Popular Constiutitonalism, Neal Devins

(105 Michigan Law Review 1333-1351 (2007))

Publications from 2006 2006

Bob Jones University v. United States 461 U.S. 574 (1983), Neal Devins

(1 Encyclopedia of American Civil Liberties 158-159 (Paul Finkelman ed., Routledge Press 2006).)

Should the Supreme Court Fear Congress?, Neal Devins

(90 Minnesota Law Review 1337-1362 (2006))

Smoke, Not Fire, Neal Devins

(65 Maryland Law Review 197-205 (2006))

Tom Delay: Popular Constitutionalist?, Neal Devins

(81 Chicago-Kent Law Review 1055-1068 (2006))

Publications from 2005 2005

The Academic Expert Before Congress: Observations and Lessons from Bill Van Alstyne's Testimony, Neal Devins

(54 Duke Law Journal 1525-1554 (2005))

Zelman v. Simmons-Harris, Neal Devins

(Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States 1115 (K. Hall ed., Oxford University Press 2005))

Judicial Review and Nongeneralizable Cases, Neal Devins and Alan J. Meese

(32 Florida State University Law Review 323-355 (2005))

Publications from 2004 2004

Better Lucky Than Good, Neal Devins

(8 Green Bag 2nd 33-41 (2004))

The Judicial Safeguards of Federalism, Neal Devins

(99 Northwestern University Law Review 131-144 (2004))

The Majoritarian Rehnquist Court?, Neal Devins

(67 Law and Contemporary Problems 63-81 (Summer, 2004))

What Brown Teaches Us About the Rehnquist Court's Federalism Revival, Neal Devins

(37 PS: Political Science & Politics 211-214 (April 2004))

Publications from 2003 2003

Bring Back the Draft?, Neal Devins

(19 Georgia State University Law Review 1107-1122 (2003))

Congress and the Making of the Second Rehnquist Court, Neal Devins

(47 Saint Louis University Law Journal 773-782 (2003))

Explaining Grutter v. Bollinger, Neal Devins

(152 University of Pennsylvania Law Review 347-383 (2003))

Politics and Principle: An Alternative Take on Seth P. Waxman's Defending Congress, Neal Devins

(81 North Carolina Law Review 2061-2074 (2003))

The Uneasy Case for Department of Justice Control of Federal Litigation, Neal Devins and Michael Herz

(5 University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law 558-606 (2003))

Publications from 2002 2002

Misunderstood, Neal Devins

(82 Boston University Law Review 293-300 (2002))

The Federalism-Rights Nexus: Explaining Why Senate Democrats Tolerate Rehnquist Court Decision Making But Not the Rehnquist Court, Neal Devins

(73 University of Colorado Law Review 1307-1336 (2002))

The Law: Defending Congress’s Interests in Court: How Lawmakers and the President Bargain over Department of Justice Representation, Neal Devins

(32 Presidential Studies Quarterly 157-68 (2002))

The Steel Seizure Case: One of a Kind?, Neal Devins and Louis Fisher

(19 Constitutional Commentary 63-86 (2002))

Publications from 2001 2001

Congress as Culprit: How Lawmakers Spurred on the Court's Anti-Congress Crusade, Neal Devins

(51 Duke Law Journal 435-464 (2001))

Congressional Factfinding and the Scope of Judicial Review: A Preliminary Analysis, Neal Devins

(50 Duke Law Journal 1169-1214 (2001))

Publications from 2000 2000

Abdication by Another Name: An Ode to Lou Fisher, Neal Devins

(19 Saint Louis University Public Law Review 65-74 (2000))

Asking the Right Questions: How the Courts Honored the Separation of Powers by Reconsidering Miranda, Neal Devins

(149 University of Pennsylvania Law Review 251-285 (2000))

Bob Jones University v. United States 461 U.S. 574 (1983), Neal Devins

(Religion and American Law: An Encyclopedia 50-52 (Paul Finkelman ed., Garland 2000))

Clinton, William Jefferson (1946- ), Neal Devins

(1 Encyclopedia of the American Constitution 431-433 (Leonard Levy et. al eds., Macmillan 2000))

How Constitutional Law Casebooks Perpetuate the Myth of Judicial Supremacy, Neal Devins

(3 Green Bag 2nd 259-265 (2000))

On Casebooks and Canons or Why Bob Jones University Will Never Be Part of the Constitutional Law Canon, Neal Devins

(17 Constitutional Commentary 285-293 (2000))

Reanimator: Mark Tushnet and the Second Coming of the Imperial Presidency, Neal Devins

(34 University of Richmond Law Review 359-371 (2000))

State Regulation of Religious Education, Neal Devins

(Religion and American Law: An Encyclopedia 470-474 (Paul Finkelman ed., Garland 2000))

Publications from 1999 1999

Bearing False Witness: The Clinton Impeachment and the Future of Academic Freedom, Neal Devins

(148 University of Pennsylvania Law Review 165-190 (1999))

I Love You, Big Brother, Neal Devins

(87 California Law Review 1283-1297 (1999))

The Democracy-Forcing Constitution, Neal Devins

(97 Michigan Law Review 1971-1993 (1999))

Publications from 1998 1998

Foreword: Government Lawyering, Neal Devins

(61 Law and Contemporary Problems 1-5 (Winter & Spring, 1998))

Judicial Exclusivity and Political Instability, Neal Devins and Louis Fisher

(84 Virginia Law Review 83-106 (1998))

The Battle That Never Was: Congress, the White House, and Agency Litigation Authority, Neal Devins and Michael Herz

(61 Law and Contemporary Problems 205-222 (Winter, 1998))

Publications from 1997 1997

In Search of the Lost Chord: Reflections on the 1996 Item Veto Act, Neal Devins

(47 Case Western Reserve Law Review 1605-1642 (1997))

The Interactive Constitution: An Essay on Clothing Emperors and Searching for Constitutional Truth, Neal Devins

(85 Georgetown Law Journal 691-714 (1997))

The Triumph of Timing: Raines v. Byrd and the Modern Supreme Court's Attempt to Control Constitutional Confrontations, Neal Devins and Michael A. Fitts

(86 Georgetown Law Journal 351-375 (1997))

Publications from 1996 1996

Congressional-Executive Information Access Disputes: A Modest Proposal - Do Nothing, Neal Devins

(48 Administrative Law Review 109-137 (1996))

Government Lawyers and the New Deal, Neal Devins

(96 Columbia Law Review 237-267 (1996))

Publications from 1995 1995

The Countermajoritarian Paradox, Neal Devins

(93 Michigan Law Review 1433-1459 (1995))

Publications from 1994 1994

Affirmative Action, Neal Devins

(1 Encyclopedia of the American Presidency 34-36 (Leonard Levy & Louis Fisher eds., Simon & Schuster 1994))

Appropriation Riders, Neal Devins

(1 Encyclopedia of the American Presidency 67-69 (Leonard Levy & Louis Fisher eds., Simon & Schuster 1994))

Civil Rights Act of 1991, Neal Devins

(1 Encyclopedia of the American Presidency 211-212 (Leonard Levy & Louis Fisher eds., Simon & Schuster 1994).)

Continuing Resolutions, Neal Devins

(1 Encyclopedia of the American Presidency 306-307 (Leonard Levy & Louis Fisher eds., Simon & Schuster 1994))

Interest Balancing and Other Limits to Judicially Managed Equal Educational Opportunity, Neal Devins

(45 Mercer Law Review 1017-1033 (1994))

Philadelphia Plan, Neal Devins

(3 Encyclopedia of the American Presidency 1163-1164 (Leonard Levy & Louis Fisher eds., Simon & Schuster 1994))

Tempest in an Envelope: Reflections on the Bush White House's Failed Takeover of the U.S. Postal Service, Neal Devins

(41 UCLA Law Review 1035-1062 (1994))

Through the Looking Glass: What Abortion Teaches Us About American Politics, Neal Devins

(94 Columbia Law Review 293-330 (1994))

Unitariness and Independence: Solicitor General Control over Independent Agency Litigation, Neal Devins

(82 California Law Review 255-327 (1994))

Publications from 1993 1993

Congress, the FCC, and the Search for the Public Trustee, Neal Devins

(56 Law and Contemporary Problems 145-188 (Autumn, 1993))

Foreword: Elected Branch Influences in Constitutional Decisionmaking, Neal Devins

(56 Law and Contemporary Problems 1-10 (1993))

Political Will and the Unitary Executive: What Makes an Independent Agency Independent?, Neal Devins

(15 Cardozo Law Review 273-312 (1993))

Reagan Redux: Civil Rights Under Bush, Neal Devins

(68 Notre Dame Law Review 955-1001 (1993))

Publications from 1992 1992

A Symbolic Balanced Budget Amendment, Neal Devins

(9 Journal of Law & Politics 61-88 (1992))

Correspondence: The Stuff of Constitutional Law, Neal Devins

(77 Iowa Law Review 1795-1801 (1992))

Fundamentalist Christian Educators v. State: An Inevitable Compromise, Neal Devins

(60 George Washington Law Review 818-840 (1992))

Group Versus Individuals, Neal Devins

(1992 Public Interest Law Review 115-120)

Judicial Matters, Neal Devins

(80 California Law Review 1027-1069 (1992))

Publications from 1991 1991

The Civil Rights Hydra, Neal Devins

(89 Michigan Law Review 1723-1765 (1991))

The Rhetoric of Equality, Neal Devins

(44 Vanderbilt Law Review 15-44 (1991))

Publications from 1990 1990

Metro Broadcasting, Inc. v. FCC: Requiem for a Heavyweight, Neal Devins

(69 Texas Law Review 125-156 (1990))

Publications from 1989 1989

Affirmative Action After Reagan, Neal Devins

(68 Texas Law Review 353-379 (1989))

Publications from 1988 1988

Appropriations Redux: A Critical Look at the Fiscal Year 1988 Continuing Resolution, Neal Devins

(1988 Duke Law Journal 389-421)

Federal Funds To Religious Groups: Where Are The First Amendment Boundaries?, Neal Devins

(1987-1988 Preview United States Supreme Court Case 403-404 (1988))

Gender Justice and its Critics, Neal Devins

(76 California Law Review 1377-1406 (1988))

The Constitution Between Friends, Neal Devins

(67 Texas Law Review 213-230 (1988))

Judicial Vigilantism: Inherent Judicial Authority to Appoint Contempt Prosecutors in Young v. United States ex reI Vuitton Et Fils S.A., Neal Devins and Steven J. Mulroy

(76 Kentucky Law Journal 861-890 (1988))