Living Constitution

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A living Constitution (or sometimes known as an "Evolving constitution") is one that changes based on perceptions of the changing views of the public. As a practical matter, it means the U.S. Constitution should be interpreted however a majority of the U.S. Supreme Court feels.

The phrase "living Constitution" was expressly used by the liberal four-Justice dissent in Rummel v. Estelle, 445 U.S. 263 (1980), and it has been implicitly embraced by the left side of the Court in numerous rulings.