Reading Room Document

Power of the United States to Conclude With the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico a Compact Which Could Be Modified Only by Mutual Consent

The opinion determines that the United States and Puerto Rico have the legal capacity to enter into a compact with each other, despite the fact that Puerto Rico is a subdivision of the U.S. The opinion further concludes that Congress has the power to work out forms of government for Puerto Rico, including grants of self-government, which can be modified only by mutual consent. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at https://justice.gov/olc/file/796061/download.

July 23, 1963