Scholarship by Catherine Smith Featured on Jotwell Smith’s article was reviewed by UVA law professor Naomi Cahn as one of the best works of recent scholarship related to Family Law.

By Law Communications
July 29, 2024

An article by Washington and Lee law professor Catherine Smith was featured recently in Jotwell: The Journal of Things We Like (Lots). The article, “’Children’s Equality Law’ in the Age of Parent’s Rights,” was reviewed by UVA law professor Naomi Cahn as one of the best works of recent scholarship related to Family Law.

In the article, Professor Smith issues a new rallying cry that the constitutional law canon should be reimagined from a children’s rights perspective. She argues that constitutional law is a blank slate that begs for a creative, critical, and intersectional vision that centers young people in framework that has for too long prioritized adults. Professor Smith begins the project by highlighting equal protection laws meager doctrinal landscape for young people. She then argues that the current family law system’s reliance on parents to act in the best interests of children to protect them falls short in a society built upon group-based hierarchies.

In her Jotwell review, Professor Cahn says that the “overall project of rewriting the constitutional canon to center children’s rights is groundbreaking.”

“Ultimately, Smith’s article breaks down silos, revealing the extent to which our blinkered categories have resulted in an impoverished understanding of the constitution and the law more broadly. ‘Children’s Equality Law’ shows why children’s equality matters in constitutional law, in other legal fields—and to families themselves,” writes Cahn.

Professor Cahn’s review is available online here. Professor Smith’s article is available online here.

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