Chapter 4: Interview With Richard McLellan

Attorney Richard McLellan provides a jurisprudential account of drafting Michigan’s charter school statute and defending it before the courts. This chapter treats his testimony as a case study in constitutional design, examining how legal language was weaponized to advance structural innovation while anticipating litigation under the Blaine Amendment. McLellan’s reflections demonstrate how reformers translated policy intent into statutory precision, creating an enduring model of state-level educational lawmaking later replicated nationwide.