Statement on Bill of Rights Day

NEWPORT BEACH, CALIFORNIA (December 15, 2025) – On this date in 1791, three-fourths of the nation’s state legislatures ratified ten of the twelve amendments proposed by the First Congress to the young constitution of the United States. Those ten amendments – known collectively as the Bill of Rights – secured fundamental liberties and established clear limits on the power of government.

More than two centuries later, many of today’s most pressing debates – particularly those balancing personal liberties against governmental authority – mirror the very concerns the document sought to address. That we continue to wrestle with these questions is not a sign of failure, but a testament to the document’s depth and the framers’ foresight.

Central to the Bill of Rights is the principle of due process: the promise that the law will be applied fairly, transparently and equally. Those guarantees, alongside freedom of religion, speech, privacy and the right to a fair proceeding, only have meaning when enforced by the Rule of Law and applied by an independent judiciary, both of which the American College of Trial Lawyers has championed relentlessly since its inception over 75 years ago.

Today, as we mark Bill of Rights Day, the College urges renewed respect for our nation’s legal system, the Rule of Law, and our judges, supporting the vital role they have played in sustaining our democracy and the rule-based society on which it depends.

Read the full statement here