The Founders listed several rights guaranteed to the people in the first eight amendments of the Bill of Rights. They did not believe that this list was all encompassing, so they included the Ninth Amendment as a way to protect the rights of the people that were not listed in the first Eight. This lesson explores the nature of these unnamed rights and examines the arguments around who should interpret them, judges or the people.

The Supreme Court has protected many rights not listed explicitly in the Bill of Rights, although it has not used the Ninth Amendment, which protects, "other rights not listed", very often. This lesson examines rights people have claimed under the Ninth Amendment. Students will analyze different perspectives of personal liberty issues, and examine the way the Supreme Court has applied the Ninth Amendment to various cases.