Glossary

Incorporation doctrine

The doctrine applying most Bill of Rights protections to state and local governments through the Fourteenth Amendment.

Also called: selective incorporation, incorporation

The Bill of Rights originally restrained only the federal government; the Supreme Court said so in Barron v. Baltimore (1833). Incorporation is the process by which the Court has held that the Fourteenth Amendment, ratified in 1868, makes most of those protections binding on the states as well.

The Court did this gradually, right by right, a method called selective incorporation, mostly through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Free speech, free exercise of religion, protection against unreasonable searches, the right to counsel and many others were applied to the states during the twentieth century. The Second Amendment was incorporated in McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010), two years after District of Columbia v. Heller recognized an individual right to keep and bear arms.

The doctrine is broadly accepted, but its legal route is debated. Some scholars and justices, including Justice Clarence Thomas, argue that the proper vehicle is the Privileges or Immunities Clause, which the Court narrowed in 1873, rather than substantive due process, which critics say has no firm textual anchor.

Last reviewed November 8, 2026

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Related terms

Substantive due process A doctrine holding that the Due Process Clauses protect certain fundamental rights from government interference, not just fair procedures. Privileges or Immunities Clause The Fourteenth Amendment clause barring states from abridging the privileges or immunities of U.S. citizens, largely dormant since 1873. District of Columbia v. Heller The 2008 Supreme Court ruling that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to keep a handgun at home for self-defense. Procedural due process The constitutional requirement that government use fair procedures, such as notice and a hearing, before depriving a person of life, liberty or property.