Does the right to privacy still hold sway in Judge Stevens’ affirmative vision of constitutional liberty?

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Authors: Manvi BOUDDH, Pragyanshu Gautam
Cited by: 0

Abstract

This research examines the historical and doctrinal evolution of the constitutional basisof the right to privacy in the United States, a fundamental right while not explicitly written in the text of the Constitution yet recognized by the Supreme Court under the Bill of Rights.Using a qualitative doctrinal methodology, the study scrutinizes how judicial perception has shifted from the "penumbra doctrine" to Justice Stevens' text-based protection of liberty under the Fourteenth Amendment.The results of this study indicate that while Justice Stevens' "affirmative vision" successfully transitioned privacy into a robust concept of personal autonomy in cases like Lawrence v.Texas (2003), the recent Dobbs v. Jackson (2022) ruling has rendered these unenumerated protections legally ambiguous by imposing a strict "history and tradition" standard.The implications suggest that for constitutional liberty to retain relevance, the legal framework must move toward John Rawls' theories of personhood and Ronald Dworkin's moral reading of the Constitution to preserve individual dignity in the digital age.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Law Rights and Freedoms Legal Rights and Human Rights American Constitutional Law and Politics

Publication details

Journal / source
Revista de drept constituţional
Volume
2025
Issue
2
Pages
121–131
Publication date
1 February 2026
Language
EN