FROM THE EDITOR

By RYAN J. MAIERSON Baker Botts L.L.P.

Rights and the Law

At its core, the purpose of the law is to define rights: the rights of person against person, group against group. Critical to our American concept of a republic is that the law also sets forth the rights of individual and government against each other. A civil right may be thought of broadly as any right of a citizen upon which he can bring a claim against someone who interferes with that right. Or it may be de-fined narrowly as the right of an individual to be free from discrimination by the government because of the individual’s status or membership in a particular group.
The articles in this special issue of The Houston Lawyer span a spectrum of civil-rights topics. Under the category of individual rights vis-a-vis the government, Wayne McCormack explores specific provisions of the PATRIOT Act and contemplates their implications for both our national security and our individual privacy. And Professor James Paulsen expounds upon Lawrence v. Texas, the Supreme Court decision finding Texas’ sodomy law unconstitutional. Professor Paulsen examines a number of aspects of the Court’s decision, including its shift in analytical focus from the right to privacy to whether the government has intruded upon a person’s liberty. This apparent doctrinal change may carry great significance for our constitutional protections.
With regard to discrimination and its lingering effects, Professor John Brittain and attorney George Jordan have provided their perspectives on the University of Michigan cases from the last Supreme Court term. These cases, the most important affirmative-action decisions in almost 25 years, reaffirm that student body diversity is a compelling state interest that can justify taking account of race in university admissions.
Don Rogers, a member of The Houston Lawyer editorial board, has done an excellent job of coordinating this issue as our guest editor. He deserves our gratitude for his efforts.
Because the law defines our rights as individuals and members of groups, we, as lawyers, have a special duty to ensure that just laws are not only enacted but evenly enforced. That is why lawyers have played a central role in the advancement of civil rights since time immemorial, and that is why The Houston Lawyer has published this special civil rights issue.
Regardless of your viewpoint on the topics we explore in this issue, it is our hope that we present you with an argument, a perspective, an idea that spurs not just thought but action. For as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., said, “Injus-tice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”


With our last issue, The Houston Lawyer celebrated 40 years of publishing for the legal community. We are grateful for our readership and the commitment of advertisers that have supported the journal throughout the years. With this issue, we continue to grow with a variety of first-time advertisers. In large part through the fees paid by these companies and individuals, we are able to provide Houston Bar Association members with a professional, award-winning publication.

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