Washington State Constitution

The Constitutional Convention of 1889 approved the original text of the Constitution.  It was amended 102 times, the last time in 2007.  The State Constitution and all of its amendments may be found in the Revised Code of Washington (RCW), the Revised Code of Washington Annotated (RCWA), and the Annotated Revised Code of Washington (ARCW).

Annotations to the Washington Constitution are notes about materials which interpret the Constitution.  The noted materials aid in understanding how sections of the Constitution are applied.  Two printed sources for annotations are:

The Washington Digest 2d abstracts court opinions discussing the State Constitution.  The Digest indexes opinions by subject and gives a brief summary of the law of the case.  The general subject is "Constitutional Law" but cases may also be indexed under other topics, such as "Civil Rights," "Discrimination," and "Searches and Seizures."  Check the "Descriptive Word Index" of the Digest for additional topics.  (See also our research guide entitled Digests for Case Law.)

A source for historical research on articles and sections of the Constitution is:

The first part of the book, entitled "Minutes of Proceedings," is a daily chronicle of matters discussed by the delegates.  The second is a section-by-section analysis showing sources and citations to articles in Territorial newspapers.  Also noted are discussions, votes, and other floor actions.  Separating the two parts is a roster of delegates with portraits and biographies.  A detailed index is available at the end of the book.

Other traditional avenues of legal research to consider are:

• Textbooks and Monographs

  See: the online catalog (GEORGE) under subject headings beginning with

  WASHINGTON (STATE) - CONSTITUTION

  http://lawlibrary.courts.wa.gov (General Public)

  http://lawlib.courts.wa.gov  (State Employees)

• Periodical Articles

  Use periodical indexes to locate law review articles, such as -

  Index to Legal Periodicals, subject:

  CONSTITUTIONAL LAW, WASHINGTON (STATE)

  Current Law Index, subject:

  CONSTITUTIONAL LAW

  Index to Washington Law Review, subject:

  CONSTITUTIONAL LAW

• Other Sources

  Washington Lawyers Practice Manual. See chapter on "Civil Rights," e.g.

  Washington State Bar Association (WSBA). Continuing Legal Education series.

  Use Cledex, a subject index to CLE seminar material; materials are indexed under "Constitutional Law" or "Civil Rights."

  Use WSBA-CLE, materials are indexed under "Constitutional Law" or "Civil Rights."

   

Note.—See our "Internet Legal Research Guide" for further information; an interactive edition is available at the Library’s website.