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.
Burlington is the largest city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the shire town of Chittenden County. With a population of 38,889 at the 2000 census, the city is the core of one of the nation's smaller metropolitan areas, and is also the smallest U.S. city to be the largest city in its state. The urbanized area consists of the cities of Burlington, South Burlington, and Winooski; the towns of Colchester, Essex, and Williston; and the village of Essex Junction. As of 2000, the Burlington-South Burlington metropolitan area contained the three northwestern Vermont counties of Chittenden, Franklin, and Grand Isle, with an estimated 2006 population of 206,007, approximately one third of Vermont's total population.