Elon Law Professor Scott Gaylord provides analysis of a recent N.C. Supreme Court decision for The Federalist Society's StateCourtsGuide.com.
“In Hart v. State, the North Carolina Supreme Court considered whether the Opportunity Scholarship Program (‘OSP’), which provided state-funded scholarships to private schools for students from lower income families, violated the North Carolina Constitution. In a 4-3 decision, the Court upheld the program, focusing largely on separation of powers concerns. Because nothing in the state constitution precluded the North Carolina General Assembly from attempting to improve educational outcomes of economically disadvantaged children, the wisdom of the OSP was a legislative, not a judicial, issue. Thus, the plaintiffs had to seek changes to the program through the political process, not the courts.
“With respect to the separation of powers issue, Chief Justice Martin, writing for the majority, emphasized the circumscribed role of the judiciary. Like ‘the legislative and executive branches of government,’ the courts are ‘expected to operate within [their] constitutionally defined spheres.’ But the judiciary’s ‘constitutionally assigned role is limited to a determination of whether the legislation is plainly and clearly prohibited by the constitution.’ Absent such a prohibition, the nature and scope of educational reforms (such as the OSP) are left to the General Assembly. Judges ‘neither participate in this dialogue nor assess the wisdom of legislation.’ As a result, the majority would ‘presume that a statute is constitutional, and … will not declare it invalid unless its unconstitutionality is demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt.’”
Read Prof. Gaylord’s full report on this case here.
Information about Elon Law Professor Scott Gaylord is available here.