Opinion ID: 3200388
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Other States’ Constitutions

Text: {¶ 20} Prior to 1851, New Hampshire, Missouri, Tennessee, and Texas had adopted constitutional provisions prohibiting retroactive laws. See New Hampshire Constitution, Part 1, Article 23 (1784); Missouri Constitution, Article XIII, Section 17 (1820); Tennessee Constitution, Article 1, Section 20 (1834); Texas Constitution, Article 1, Section 14 (1845). By 1851, the supreme courts of both New Hampshire and Texas had had the opportunity to construe the meaning of their respective provisions. See Merrill v. Sherburne, 1 N.H. 199, 212-213 (1818); DeCordova v. Galveston, 4 Tex. 470, 479 (1849). The Merrill court, in concluding that an act was unconstitutionally retroactive, stressed that only those retrospective acts that “operate on the interests of individuals or of private corporations” violate the constitution, explaining that “all public[] officers impliedly consent to alterations of the institutions in which they officiate, provided the public[] deem it expedient to introduce a change.” (Emphasis sic.) Merrill at 213, 217. The DeCordova court noted Merrill’s statement about individuals and private corporations and found that Merrill “illustrate[d] the intention of the [Texas] convention in imposing the restriction.” DeCordova at 479. 8 January Term, 2016