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26 

FULTON v. PHILADELPHIA 

ALITO, J., concurring in judgment
ALITO, J., concurring in judgment 

tion that a law abolishing juries in all civil cases would vi-
olate the rights of parties in cases that fall within the Sev-
enth Amendment’s scope?

Other examples involving language similar to that in the
Free Exercise Clause are easy to imagine.  Suppose that the
amount  of  time  generally  allotted  to  complete  a  state  bar
exam  is  12 hours  but  that  applicants  with  disabilities  se-
cure a consent decree allowing them an extra hour.  Sup-
pose that the State later adopts a rule requiring all appli-
cants  to  complete  the  exam  in  11  hours.    Would  anyone
argue that this was consistent with the decree? 

Suppose that classic car enthusiasts secure the passage
of  a  state  constitutional  amendment  exempting  cars  of  a 
certain age from annual safety inspections, but the legisla-
ture later enacts a law requiring such inspections for all ve-
hicles regardless of age.  Can there be any doubt that this
would violate the state constitution? 

It is not necessary to belabor this point further.  What all 
these examples show is that Smith’s interpretation conflicts
with the ordinary meaning of the First Amendment’s terms. 

C 
Is  there  any  way  to  bring  about  a  reconciliation?    The 
short answer is “no.”  Survey all the briefs filed in support
of respondents (they total more than 40) and three decades
of  law  review  articles,  and  what  will  you  find?    Philadel-
phia’s brief refers in passing to one possible argument—and 
the source it cites is a law review article by one of Smith’s 
leading academic critics, Professor Michael W. McConnell. 
See Brief for City Respondents 49 (citing McConnell, Free 
Exercise Revisionism 1115).  Trying to see if there was any 
way to make Smith fit with the constitutional text, Profes-
sor McConnell came up with this argument—but then re-
jected  it.  McConnell,  Free  Exercise  Revisionism  1115– 
1116.