Jill Fraley Publishes Article on Property, Sovereignty and Noncitizen Land Laws The article in the Indiana Law Journal Supplement examines the constitutional foundations of state laws restricting noncitizen ownership of real property.

By Law Communications
September 7, 2026

Jill M. Fraley, professor of law at Washington and Lee University School of Law, has published “Feudal Is Fine Because Property Is Sovereignty: Rational Basis Equal Protection and the New Noncitizen Land Laws” in the Indiana Law Journal Supplement.

The article examines a new wave of state laws restricting noncitizens’ ownership of real property and the constitutional challenges those laws have generated, particularly under equal protection and federal preemption doctrines.

Fraley challenges the prevailing view that these restrictions are unlikely to survive constitutional scrutiny. She argues that state regulation of land occupies a distinct constitutional position because property ownership has historically been connected to state sovereignty rather than treated simply as a form of economic activity.

Drawing on Supreme Court jurisprudence concerning citizenship-based classifications, the article distinguishes between laws affecting ordinary participation in civil society and those involving core sovereign functions. Fraley argues that this distinction supports applying rational basis review to contemporary noncitizen land laws and provides a constitutional foundation for greater state authority over land ownership.

More broadly, the article places property at the intersection of constitutional structure, citizenship and democratic theory, examining the relationship between state control of land and concerns including democratic accountability, territorial integrity, and national security.

The article is available through the W&L Law faculty scholarship repository.

If you know a W&L faculty member who has done great, accolade-worthy things, tell us about them! Nominate them for an accolade.