Gavin Howe
In 1803, the Marbury v. Madison case established the right of the courts to determine the constitutionality of the actions of the other two branches of government. Chief Justice John Marshall established the principle of judicial review, which is an important addition to the system of checks and balances. Marshall's statement, A Law repugnant to the Constitution is void, marked the first time the Supreme Court declared a law passed by Congress and signed by the President as unconstitutional. This case involved a commission issued by outgoing President John Adams to William Marbury, which was refused by the new Secretary of State, James Madison, leading to Marbury suing to obtain it. While the Constitution did not explicitly grant the Court this power, Marshall believed that the Supreme Court should hold a position comparable to that of the other two branches.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Year | 1803 |
| Case | Marbury v. Madison |
| Plaintiff | William Marbury |
| Defendant | James Madison |
| Chief Justice | John Marshall |
| Issue | Refusal to deliver commission as justice of the peace |
| Outcome | Established principle of judicial review |
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What You'll Learn
Marbury v. Madison (1803)
The case of Marbury v. Madison in 1803 was the first instance of the US Supreme Court overturning a federal law on the grounds of unconstitutionality.
The case was brought by William Marbury, who, along with Dennis Ramsay, Robert Townsend Hooe, and William Harper, sued James Madison, the Secretary of State, to obtain their commissions as justices of the peace in the District of Columbia. Outgoing President John Adams had issued these commissions, but Madison refused to deliver them.
The decision in this case, made by Chief Justice John Marshall, established the principle of judicial review and the right of the courts to determine the constitutionality of the actions of the other two branches of government. This was an important addition to the system of "checks and balances", preventing any one branch of the federal government from becoming too powerful.
The case also set a precedent for the Supreme Court's power to strike down laws that conflict with the Constitution, with Marshall stating that "it is emphatically the duty of the Judicial Department to say what the law is". This case completed the system of checks and balances, allowing laws to be enacted, interpreted, and executed with safeguards against the abuse of power.
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United States v. Klein (1872)
On December 8, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation offering a pardon to any person who had supported or fought for the Confederate Army, with full restoration of property rights, subject only to taking an oath of allegiance. The United States Congress had passed an act in 1863 that permitted the owners of property confiscated during the war to receive the proceeds from its sale. V.F. Wilson, who had supported the Confederate Army, took the oath of allegiance and honoured it until his death on July 22, 1865.
John A. Klein, the administrator of Wilson's estate, applied to the Court of Claims to recover the proceeds of the sale of Wilson's property. The Court of Claims decided in 1869 that Wilson's estate was entitled to the proceeds. However, in 1870, Congress passed a law prohibiting the use of a presidential pardon as the basis for claiming sale proceeds. This law also stated that the acceptance of such a pardon was evidence that the pardoned individual had supported the Confederacy and was therefore ineligible to recover sale proceeds. The law included a jurisdiction-stripping provision, stating that the Supreme Court "shall have no further jurisdiction of the cause, and shall dismiss the same for want of jurisdiction".
The United States appealed to the Supreme Court based on the 1870 statute, arguing that Wilson's estate was not entitled to the sale proceeds due to Wilson having accepted a presidential pardon. The Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase, held that the Congressional statute was unconstitutional, as it impaired the effect of a pardon and infringed on the constitutional power of the executive branch. Justice Samuel F. Miller dissented, arguing that Wilson's estate was not entitled to the property but agreeing that the act was unconstitutional in attempting to prescribe the judiciary's response to a presidential pardon.
The case of United States v. Klein affirmed the fundamental value of the separation of powers defined by the Constitution. It established that Congress may not direct the outcome of a case by prescribing a rule of decision and may not impair the power and effect of a presidential pardon. The decision clarified the role of the judiciary as the final arbiter of the Constitution's meaning, emphasising that neither the legislative nor the executive branch may interfere with the functioning of the judiciary.
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Terral v. Burke Constr. Co. (1922)
The case of Terral v. Burke Constr. Co. (1922) is significant in the context of US laws being overturned for unconstitutionality. This case centred around a dispute between the Burke Construction Company, a corporation based in Missouri, and the Secretary of State of Arkansas, Mr. Terral.
The Burke Construction Company had been licensed to operate in Arkansas since 1907. However, a state law in Arkansas allowed for the revocation of a foreign corporation's license to do business within the state if that corporation resorted to federal courts located in Arkansas. As a result, the Burke Construction Company filed a lawsuit against Mr. Terral, arguing that this state law violated the judiciary article of the federal Constitution and the Fourteenth Amendment.
The case, Terral v. Burke Constr. Co., was heard by the US Supreme Court in 1922. The Court ruled in favour of the Burke Construction Company, finding that the Arkansas state law was indeed unconstitutional. This decision set a precedent, overruling previous cases such as Doyle v. Continental Insurance Co. and Security Mutual Life Insurance Co. v. Prewitt.
The outcome of Terral v. Burke Constr. Co. highlighted the importance of federal law taking precedence over state law in certain circumstances, particularly when it comes to the operations of interstate commerce and the protection of constitutional rights. The case also demonstrated the power of the US Supreme Court in interpreting and enforcing the US Constitution, ensuring that state laws do not infringe on the rights and privileges granted to citizens and businesses by the Constitution.
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Bartnicki v. Vopper (2001)
In the case of Bartnicki v. Vopper, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment protects speech that discloses the contents of illegally intercepted communications. The case revolved around a cell phone conversation between Gloria Bartnicki, chief negotiator for the Wyoming Valley West School District Teachers' Union, and Anthony Kane, a teacher, and president of the union. Their conversation, which took place during contentious collective bargaining negotiations with the school board, was illegally intercepted and recorded by an unidentified person. In the conversation, Kane made threatening remarks, suggesting that if the union's demands were not met, they would have to take drastic action against those on the other side of the negotiations. After the parties accepted a non-binding arbitration proposal generally favourable to the teachers, respondent Frederick Williams, also known as radio personality Frederick Vopper, played excerpts of the intercepted conversation on his public affairs radio show.
Bartnicki and Kane filed a lawsuit for damages under federal and state wiretapping laws against Vopper and Jack Yocum, the president of an organization formed to oppose the teachers' contract. They argued that Vopper and Yocum had published the tape of the conversation despite knowing or having reason to know that it had been made illegally. It was later discovered that Yocum had obtained the tape from an unknown source and provided it to Vopper. At trial, it was stipulated that the taped conversation had been recorded in violation of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act. However, the Court still held that the broadcast was legal.
The Supreme Court's decision in Bartnicki v. Vopper set a precedent for balancing the protection of privacy with freedom of speech. The Court recognized the importance of safeguarding private communications but also affirmed that the First Amendment protects the disclosure of information of public concern, even if the information was obtained illegally, as long as the party disclosing the information was not complicit in the illegal act. This ruling highlighted the Court's interpretation of the First Amendment's robust protection of speech and press freedom, even in cases involving sensitive or illegally obtained information.
The case of Bartnicki v. Vopper has been influential in shaping subsequent court decisions involving similar issues. In the years following the ruling, lower courts have interpreted the opinion narrowly, with Justice Breyer's narrow construction of the holding effectively prevailing. This indicates that the holding in Bartnicki v. Vopper is applied specifically to its unique factual circumstances and has not been broadly extended to other cases. Nonetheless, the case stands as a significant marker of the boundary between privacy rights and freedom of speech in the digital age, with the Supreme Court prioritizing the protection of speech in this instance.
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City of Boerne v. Flores (1997)
The dispute arose when the Catholic Archbishop of San Antonio, Patrick Flores, applied for a building permit to enlarge St. Peter's Church in Boerne, Texas. The church was a historic mission-style building, and the local zoning authorities denied the permit, citing an ordinance governing historic preservation in the area. The Archbishop argued that the congregation had outgrown the existing structure, and the ruling substantially burdened the free exercise of religion without a compelling state interest.
The Archbishop brought the suit under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (RFRA). RFRA required courts to use strict scrutiny when reviewing any regulation that substantially burdened the free exercise of religion, even if it did not intend to discriminate against religion and was generally applicable. The act also applied to all laws passed by Congress before its enactment and to all future laws that were not explicitly exempted, including state and local governments.
The District Court concluded that by enacting RFRA, Congress exceeded the scope of its enforcement power under Section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment. However, the Fifth Circuit reversed this decision, finding RFRA to be constitutional. The City of Boerne then filed a certiorari petition to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court ruled in favour of the City of Boerne, striking down RFRA as it applied to the states. The Court stated that the statute was an unconstitutional use of Congress's enforcement powers, as it attempted to define the substance of the Fourteenth Amendment's restrictions, rather than enforce them through appropriate legislation. The Court also emphasised the congruence and proportionality requirement, where remedial or prophylactic legislation must show a balance between the aim of the legislation and the means chosen to reach those ends.
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Frequently asked questions
In 1803, Marbury v. Madison established the right of the courts to determine the constitutionality of the actions of the other two branches of government.
In 1801, outgoing President John Adams appointed William Marbury as a justice of the peace, but the new Secretary of State, James Madison, refused to deliver the commission. Marbury then sued to obtain it.
Chief Justice John Marshall established the principle of judicial review, adding a "check" to the system of government to prevent any one branch from becoming too powerful.
In 1819, Dartmouth College v. Woodward found that a New Hampshire law that altered a charter granted to a private corporation by the British Crown prior to the American Revolution violated the Contracts Clause.
In 1872, United States v. Klein found that a provision making Presidential pardons inadmissible in evidence in the Court of Claims was an interference with judicial power and the pardoning power.
