What is the difference between a informal and formal amendment?

Answer 1

Informal Amendment Process

The term "Informal Amendment Process" refers to changes in the interpretation or application of the Constitution. This may mean expanding constitutional rights (such as voting) to include groups that were previously excluded, or it may mean curtailing rights, depending upon the constitutional beliefs held by the majority of Supreme Court justices or by Congress. These changes often occur as the result of judicial decisions, usually by the US Supreme Court or by Congressional legislation not struck down as unconstitutional. It is important to note that the "Informal Amendment Process" doesn't actually change the Constitution, just the way it is understood and applied, which is in a constant state of flux due to evolving (or devolving) sociopolitical conditions.

Formal Amendment Process

The Constitution can only be changed by Amendment, which requires a two-thirds vote from each the Senate and House of Representatives, followed by ratification by 75% of the states. In practice, an Amendment is ratified when it receives its 39th state vote, assuming the vote is made within the time frame set forth by Congress (typically 7 years). Votes cannot be rescinded.

When the Constitution is Amended, the new text is added to the end of the document, and the original text, although superseded, remains intact. For example, the Eleventh Amendment (1795) revoked the US Supreme Court's right to hear disputes between a state and the citizens of another state under original jurisdiction. Congress and the states instituted the change due to the Supreme Court's decision in Chisholm v. Georgia, (1793), which held that the states lacked sovereign immunity from law suits arising from unpaid war debt.

A better known example is the 18th Amendment (1919) "Prohibition" of the manufacture, sale, and transport of alcohol, except that prescribed for medicinal purposes. The unpopular 18th Amendment was only in effect for fourteen years before being repealed by the 21st Amendment (1933).

formal amendment- changes or additions that become part of the written language of the constitution.