Supreme court cases: constitution is the supreme

law of the landAnalyze court cases that illustrate that the US Constitution is the supreme law of the land

Getting the IdeaPowers of the Constitution were

challenged shortly after the US won independence

Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Marshall was called upon to fulfill its duty to interpret the law

At stake were the type of power the Constitution had and the Supreme Court’s right to declare laws & court decisions unconstitutional

The Elastic Clause One of the means by which the Supreme Court was able

to interpret laws Found in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution Give Congress the power to “make all laws which shall

be necessary and proper” for carrying out the powers & purposes of the Constitution

Named the elastic clause because it can be used to stretch and expand the powers of Congress to fit different situations

Flexibility has made frequent amendments to the Constitution unnecessary

Has forced the court system to rely on open-ended interpretations of the law

LANDMARK SUPREME COURT CASES

Marbury v. Madison Year: 1803 Issue:

William Marbury was a federal judge appointed by President Adams shortly before he left office

Marbury appealed to the court when President Jefferson’s secretary of state James Madison refused to accept his appointment

The Decision: Constitution gave the Supreme Court power to decide

the case The Significance:

Established the principle of judicial review

McCulloch v. Maryland• Year: 1819• Issue:

– State of Maryland taxed banks that issued notes without the state’s consent

• The Decision:– State couldn’t tax banks because they were federal institutions

• The Significance:– Strengthened powers of the federal government– Upheld doctrine of “implied powers”– Affirmed the authority of federal powers over state powers

Gibbons v. Ogden• Year: 1824• Issue:

– New York had granted a monopoly on steamboat transportation to Robert Fulton & Robert Livingston – they granted a license to Aaron Ogden

– Charles Gibbons did not have a license and argued that he had the right to navigate freely

• The Decision:– Struck down the monopoly as a violation of the rights of the federal

government• The Significance:

– Established the federal government’s right to regulate interstate commerce– Affirmed the federal government’s regulatory power over certain actions of

the state and individuals

Plessy v. Ferguson Year: 1896 Issue:

Homer Plessy was an African American who sat on a white’s only section of a train and was arrested

The Decision: Ruled that if public accommodations were

equal that the races could be separated The Significance:

Upheld segregation laws

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka Year: 1954 Issue:

African American girl not allowed to attend an all-white school

The Decision: Overturned the “separate but equal” doctrine

The Significance: De-segregated schools

Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. U.S.• Year: 1964• Issue:

– Motel refused to accept African American– Tested the 1964 Civil Rights Act

• The Decision:– Court held that eh commerce clause allowed

Congress to regulate local commerce & that the Civil Rights Act was constitutional

• The Significance:– Upheld the Civil Rights Act & power of the

federal government

Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education

• Year: 1971• Issue:

– School busing being used to de-segregate schools• The Decision:

– Ruled that NC school districts had a duty to dismantle school segregation

– Upheld the policy of forced busing of students to combat desegregation

• The Significance:– Extended the principles of the Brown decision & the Civil

Rights Act

Korematsu v. United States• Year: 1944• Issue:

– U.S. use of internment camps for Japanese Americans during WWII

• The Decision:– Ruled that the U.S. government had the right to detain

suspected enemies in wartime• The Significance:

– Upheld the federal government’s power to limit civil rights during times of war

Summary & Review