Constitutional law attorneys handle cases involving the construction and interpretation of federal and state constitutions, including individual rights and governmental powers. Constitutional law cases can involve issues like First Amendment rights -- such as freedom of speech, press, and religion -- and the checks and balances on authority among different branches of government. Most of the federal constitutional rights are found in the Bill of Rights, that was created originally as a limitation on the action by the federal government, but many of those rights are also applicable to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment.
Vandalia is a city in Fayette County, Illinois, 69 miles (111 km) northeast of St. Louis, on the Kaskaskia River. In 1900, 2,665 people lived in Vandalia; in 1910, 2,974; and in 1940, 5,288. The population was 6,975 at the 2000 Census. It is the county seat of Fayette County, the home of the Vandalia State House State Historic Site (1836), and was a terminus of the National Road. In 1819, it was decided to move the state capital from Kaskaskia to Vandalia. Since 1839, Springfield has been the capital.