Retroactive Legislation Flashcards
Contract clause - impairment of contract
The contract clause limits the ability of states and local governments to enact laws that retroactively impair contract rights. It doesn’t affect contracts not yet made.
Contract clause - not applicable to federal government
The contract clause is not applicable to the federal government. There’s no comparable clause applicable to the federal government, but flagrant contract impairment would violate the fifth amendment due process clause.
Contract clause - basic impairment rules - private contracts
Legislation that substantially impairs, an existing private contract is invalid unless the legislation:
Serves an important and legitimate public interest
And
Is a reasonable and narrowly tailored means of promoting that interest
Contract clause - basic impairment rules - public contracts
Legislation that impairs a contract to which the state is a party is tested by the same basic test as private contracts, but the legislation will likely receive heightened scrutiny, especially if the legislation reduces the contractual burden on the state.
Ex Post Facto Laws
Neither the states, nor the federal government may pass an ex post facto law, which is a law that retroactively alters criminal offenses, or punishments in a substantially prejudicial manner for the purpose of punishing a person for some past activity.
Statute retroactively alters a law in a substantially prejudicial manner if it:
Makes criminal an act that was an innocent done,
Imposes a greater punishment for an act than was imposed when the act was done,
Or
Reduces the evidence required to convict a person of a crime from what was required when the act was committed.
Note that the due process clauses of the fifth and 14th amendment similarly prohibit courts from retroactively, interpreting criminal laws in an unexpected and indefensible way. 
Bills of attainder
Bills of attender are legislative acts that inflict punishment on individuals without a judicial trial. Both federal and state local government governments are prohibited from passing bills of a tender.
Punishment can equal jail, fines, or exclusion from government benefits or employment.
Due process considerations
If a retroactive law does not violate the contracts, ex post facto, or a bill of attained clauses, it still must pass muster under the due process clause. If the retroactive law doesn’t substantially burden a fundamental right, it only needs to be rationally related to a legitimate government interest.
