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.
Fort Wayne is a city in the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Allen County. As of 2008, the city had an estimated population of 251,591, ranking it the 73 largest city in the nation. It is the second largest city in Indiana, after Indianapolis. The municipality is located in northeastern Indiana, approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of the Ohio border and 50 miles (80 km) south of the Michigan border. Fort Wayne is the principal city of the Fort Wayne Metropolitan Statistical Area, a metropolitan area that encompasses Allen, Wells, and Whitley counties, for an estimated population of 411,154. In addition to those three counties, the Fort Wayne–Huntington–Auburn CSA, a combined statistical area, includes Adams, DeKalb, Huntington, and Noble counties, for a population of 570,779. Under the direction of American Revolutionary War statesman General "Mad" Anthony Wayne, the United States Army built Fort Wayne last in a series of forts near the Miami Indian village of Kekionga in 1794. Named in Wayne's honor, Fort Wayne established itself at the confluence of the St. Joseph River, St. Marys River, and Maumee River as a trading post for European settlers. The village was platted in 1823 and experienced tremendous growth after completion of the Wabash and Erie Canal. Today, Fort Wayne's economy is based on manufacturing, education, insurance, health care, logistics, and defense and security. The city has been an All-America City Award recipient in 1982, 1998, and 2009.