Charleston School of Law professor William Merkel and the Charleston Law Review were both cited in a Supreme Court opinion released last week.

Professor Merkel was cited in Supreme Court Justice Breyer’s dissenting opinion in New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n, Inc. v. Bruen. Justice Breyer cited Professor Merkel’s article, Heller as Hubris, and How McDonald v. City of Chicago May Well Change the Constitutional World as We Know It, which appeared in the Santa Clara Law Review in 2010.

Bruen raised the question of whether the Second Amendment guarantees the right to carry concealed firearms outside the home. The Court found New York’s gun statute unconstitutional.

In addition, an article in the Charleston Law Review, a student-run journal comprised of second- and third-year law students, was cited in the Supreme Court’s majority opinion. The majority cited a 2018 article that appeared in volume 13 of the Law Review. It was authored by David Kopel and Joseph Greenlee.

The Charleston School of Law offers more than 40 student organizations. To learn more about our school publications and additional student-led organizations, visit charlestonlaw.edu.

“Congratulations to Professor Merkel and the Charleston Law Review for being cited in one of the most important Supreme Court cases this year,” said Dean Cunningham. “Scholarship is not only for scholars. Faculty research has the ability to assist courts in deciding cases, as these citations are a testament to.”