644 articles
National Do Not Call Registry
The National Do Not Call Registry is the FTC-run U.S. list of phone numbers whose owners opt out of most telemarketing sales calls. Opened June 2003, free, permanent since 2007, 259 million active registrations as of FY 2025, with exemptions for political, charity, survey, and business-relationship calls.
National Environmental Policy Act
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), US federal law signed January 1, 1970, requiring environmental review of major federal actions through categorical exclusions, environmental assessments, and environmental impact statements, overseen by the Council on Environmental Quality.
National Human Rights Commission of India (राष्ट्रीय मानवाधिकार आयोग)
National Human Rights Commission of India (राष्ट्रीय मानवाधिकार आयोग), NHRC: statutory human rights body under the 1993 Act, chaired by a former Chief Justice or Supreme Court judge, holding GANHRI 'A' status since 1999 but facing downgrade.
National Reconciliation Ordinance
The National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO, Ordinance LX of 2007), promulgated by President Musharraf on 5 October 2007, withdrew corruption cases against public office holders before 12 October 1999; declared void ab initio by the Supreme Court in December 2009.
National Voter Registration Act of 1993
The National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA, Motor Voter law), P.L. 103-31, requires states to offer federal-election voter registration at motor vehicle agencies, by mail, and at public assistance and disability offices, with 30-day cutoff and 90-day purge limits.
Nationality
Nationality, also called citizenship, is the legal bond between a person and a State, acquired by jus soli, jus sanguinis, or naturalization, with rules on dual nationality, renunciation, deprivation, and statelessness set by each sovereign state.
Native American gaming
Native American gaming (Indian/tribal gaming): gambling by federally recognized tribes on Indian lands under the 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, three gaming classes, NIGC oversight, $43.9 billion FY 2024 revenue.
Natural-born-citizen clause
The natural-born-citizen clause, Article II Section 1 clause 5, limits the US presidency to citizens at birth, including those born abroad to citizen parents; undefined by the Constitution, interpreted through English common law and Wong Kim Ark, and never directly tested by the Supreme Court in an eligibility case.
Naturalization
Naturalization: the legal procedure by which a non-national applies to a State for nationality or citizenship, distinct from jus soli and jus sanguinis birthright. Covers requirements, refugee treaties, US and UK rules, and recent OECD and EU grant statistics.
Naturalization Act of 1790
The Naturalization Act of 1790 (1 Stat. 103) was the first U.S. federal naturalization law, limiting citizenship to free white persons with two years' residence; repealed by the 1795 act.
Necessary and Proper Clause
Necessary and Proper Clause (Elastic Clause, Sweeping Clause), Article I, Section 8, Clause 18 of the U.S. Constitution, letting Congress pass laws to execute federal powers; source of implied powers, defined by McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) and limited by Printz (1997).
New Hampshire House of Representatives
New Hampshire House of Representatives, lower chamber of the General Court: 400 members, largest US state legislative body, $200 per two-year term, 203 districts with 39 floterial districts, Republican-controlled since 2020.
Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Nineteenth Amendment, also called the Susan B. Anthony Amendment, bars denying the vote on account of sex. Passed by Congress in 1919, ratified by Tennessee as the 36th state on August 18, 1920, certified August 26, 1920.
Ninth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Ninth Amendment (ratified December 15, 1791) of the U.S. Bill of Rights says enumerated rights must not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people; its meaning and judicial use remain contested.
Norma McCorvey
Norma McCorvey (1947–2017), pseudonym Jane Roe, was the plaintiff in Roe v. Wade (1973). She later converted to anti-abortion activism, then said in AKA Jane Roe (2020) it was a paid act.
Norman Bentwich
Norman Bentwich (1883–1971) was a British barrister and legal academic who served as the first Attorney-General of Mandatory Palestine from 1920 to 1931, then held the chair of international relations at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Nothing to hide argument
The nothing to hide argument claims surveillance threatens only wrongdoers, so innocent people need not fear it. Critiqued by Daniel Solove as conflating privacy with secrecy; countered by Richards and Snowden.
Nullification (U.S. Constitution)
Nullification is the asserted right of a U.S. state to declare federal laws unconstitutional and block them within its borders. Originating in the 1798 Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions and tested in the 1832-1833 Nullification Crisis, it has been rejected by every court under the Supremacy Clause.
NY SAFE Act
NY SAFE Act (Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act of 2013), New York's Chapter 1 gun law: one-feature assault weapon ban with registration, seven-round magazine limit, universal background checks, ammunition seller registration, mental-health reporting, upheld in Cuomo and Gazzola.
Oath of Allegiance (United States)
The U.S. naturalization Oath of Allegiance (INA § 337, 8 U.S.C. § 1448; text at 8 CFR 337.1): mandatory public-ceremony oath renouncing foreign allegiance, supporting the Constitution, and committing to military or civilian service, with religious modifications and disability waivers.
Oirat code of 1640
The Oirat code of 1640, known as Ikh Tsaaz (Great Code), is a Mongol-Oirat law code adopted at a 1640 congress of princes from Dzungaria, Khalkha Mongolia, and Kalmykia.
Oliver Brown (American activist)
Oliver Leon Brown (1918-1961), Topeka welder and AME pastor, was lead plaintiff in Brown v. Board of Education (1954), recruited by the NAACP after his daughter Linda was denied entry to Sumner Elementary.
Ombudsman
An ombudsman is a public official, appointed by a legislature, who investigates complaints from individuals against government administrative acts; the office originated in Sweden in 1809.
Online age verification laws by country
Online age verification laws by country: statutes requiring age checks for social media, adult content, and app stores. Covers the UK Online Safety Act, Australia's under-16 ban, the EU blueprint, and US state laws, with adoption, enforcement, and privacy criticism.
Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024
The Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024 is an Australian federal law establishing a minimum-age framework for accounts on specified social media services. It amended the Online Safety Act.
Open carry in the United States
Open carry in the United States is the practice of carrying a visible firearm in public, legal without a permit in 27 states as of 2024.
Organic Regulations
The Organic Regulations (Regulamentele Organice) were the first quasi-constitutional laws of Wallachia and Moldavia, promulgated in 1831 and 1832 under Russian occupation, introducing the separation of powers.
Originalism
Originalism is a theory of constitutional interpretation holding that the U.S. Constitution means what it did at adoption, chiefly via original public meaning; its rival is living constitutionalism, and Scalia, Gorsuch, and the Federalist Society champion it.
Overview of gun laws by nation
Overview of gun laws by nation: how countries regulate civilian firearms. Civilians hold ~650 million guns; rules range from Japan's near-total ban to permissive US licensing, with most nations banning fully automatic weapons.
Palauan nuclear-free constitution
The Palauan nuclear-free constitution is Palau's 1979 constitution, the world's first nuclear-free constitutional provision, banning nuclear weapons and power plants unless approved by 75 percent of voters.