Rights never die.

Explanation

Rights are immortal and cannot be extinguished by disuse, suppression, or the passage of time — a right that has lain dormant for generations may be revived and enforced at any time.

Where this applies

• A state argues that a constitutional right has been effectively repealed through decades of non-enforcement, but the court holds that rights never die — they can be revived and asserted at any time.
• A property owner's mineral rights have gone unexercised for three generations, and the state claims they have lapsed, but the court rules that rights are immortal and do not expire through disuse.
• A municipality argues that citizens have lost their right to a public hearing before property is condemned because no one has demanded one in fifty years, but the court holds that the right was merely dormant, not dead.