American Constitutional Development Court Cases

Front 1

Marbury v. Madison

Back 1

Marbury sues Madison for with holding his appt. by Adams; established judicial review; Marbury's claim unconstitutional

Front 2

Martin v. Hunter's Lessee

Back 2

Martin, a Tory, had his house seized and burglarized by Revolutionaries after war; VA failed to follow the Treaty of Paris which stated seized lands were returned to owners; supremacy clause

Front 3

Cohens v. Virginia

Back 3

Congress passes law to sell lotto tickets; selling lotto banned in VA; Cohen bros, claim federal law superior to state law; not really a federal law, Cohens go to jail

Front 4

Ableman v. Booth

Back 4

Booth held for assisting a slave flee but not told why arrested; is issued a 'habeas corpus' by state of WI but not allowed since federal law broken

Front 5

Boerne v. Flores

Back 5

Tried to overturn a precedent from previous case; Flores wanted to expand church, but not allowed to buy land since it is protected; flores says it goes against his right; City wins.

Front 6

Luther v. Borden

Back 6

Issue of Checks and Balances; Dorr Rebellion, people make another state constitution and act on it; Charter gov. busts Dorr for supplying to rebels and is arrested; not recognized by current state const. nor Am. Const.

Front 7

US v. Curtiss-Wright Export Company

Back 7

Company caught selling to S. Am. rebels at war; against law; Only pres. can act on international relations unless specified otherwise

Front 8

Youngstown Sheet & Tube v. Sawyer

Back 8

Steel companies go on strike; Truman seizes them due to Korean War; Truman overshot his jurisdiction;

Front 9

US v. Nixon

Back 9

Nixon with holds tapes that could contribute to a criminal case; Nixon claims 'executive privileges'

Front 10

Hamdi v. Rumsfeld

Back 10

Hamdi is a natural Am. born citizen; is caught abroad with terrorists as an enemy combatant; not told his rights even though he technically has them; father sues and wins

Front 11

McCulloch v. Maryland

Back 11

Congress establishes a national bank; MD passes law that places tax on banks not from MD; "Elastic" Clause; supremacy clause; MD people are part of whole and bank is for whole

Front 12

New York v. Miln

Back 12

Ships entering US needed to have list of people aboard ship; MILN did not have a list; claim NY is breaking commerce clause; is not since it is looking after well-being of state and country

Front 13

Gibbons v. Ogden

Back 13

Ogden given full monopoly over a river by NY; Gibbons has own steamboats and uses them anyways; say law impedes commerce clause; first case about commerce clause; Gibbons wins since trade is inter-state

Front 14

US v. E.C. Knight Co.

Back 14

The "Sugar Trust" Case; EC controlled 98% of manufacturing sugar facilities; sued for monopoly and breaking commerce clause; not the case since it is manufacturing, not any trafficking; plus no one is stopping new manufacturers from rising

Front 15

Schecter v. US

Back 15

chicken case; law passed that straight kill is illegal; says NIRA is unconstitutional-gave pres too much power; killing has no relation with commerce; outside commerce clause

Front 16

NLRB v. Jones and Laughlin Steel

Back 16

FDR is court packing; "the switch in time that saved nine"; labor strikes; fed. gov. steps in since it affected interstate commerce; fell under commerce clause

Front 17

Wickard v. Filburn

Back 17

Farmers required to meet a quota in products; Filburn goes beyond quota and keeps extra for family; is fined for keeping surplus; Unconstitutional since Congress cannot work locally, not allowed to aim at material that isn't crossing state-lines.

Front 18

Heart of Atlanta v. US

Back 18

Civil rights case; an African American is denied in a hotel due to his skin color; the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is reviewed and found constitutional through commerce clause; business of hotel includes people from across state lines of Georgia

Front 19

US v. Lopez

Back 19

Student brings gun to school; sentenced to prison but feds excuse this since he did not know; sentenced to six months instead; issue of whether act forbidding carrying guns on school campus was unconstitutional due to commerce clause; nope, protects people

Front 20

Gonzales v. Raich

Back 20

CA allows use of medical marijuana; conflicts with Controlled Substance Act; Gonzales grows in home; issue if act exceeded Congress' power under Commerce Clause; no, MJ is a schedule I drug, ergo illegal

Front 21

Trustess of Dartmouth v. Woodward

Back 21

Dartmouth issued a charter (contract) by king as a college; NH wants to make it a public college and give a superior board of trustees; Action goes against contract clause since charter is private

Front 22

Charles River Bridge v. Warren Bridge

Back 22

Harvard given monopoly over river in MASS with ferry; Build Charles R. Bridge, toll; Warren bridge made, but is free; Charles R. says contract clause broken, but contract doesn't transfer to bridge

Front 23

Barron v. Mayor of Baltimore

Back 23

Baltimore is repaving streets, debris builds up on mans harbor; inhibit business; says he should be paid for damages, according to Amend. V; MD court does; Marshall says issue does not fall under courts jurisdiction; Bill of Rights only applies to Federal Gov, not State

Front 24

McDonald v. Chicago

Back 24

Guns banned in Chicago; Goes against Amend II but issue of whether it applies to states according to Amend XVI; Conclude that guns can be kept for self defense; State can regulate but not ban

Front 25

Dred Scott v. Sanford

Back 25

Dred Scott, slave, carried across slave line (Missouri Compromise) with owner; claims to be free after living there after a certain time; courts rule against him saying property remains with owner, whether he is dead or alive.

Front 26

Slaughter-House Cases

Back 26

Un-enumerated rights; New Orleans set law to move all slaughter houses outside city, in one facility; butchers sue, inhibits business and violates Privileges and Immunities Clause; Justice says that clause is too vague to make any decisions; does not inhibit rights

Front 27

Allgeyer v. Louisiana

Back 27

Louisiana says insurance must be bought with instate companies; Allgeyer buys from NY; goes against "liberty of contract"; first time SDP overturns law; Allgeyer has constitutional protected right

Front 28

Lochner v. New York

Back 28

Hours of baker limited; Goes against "liberty of contract"; interferes wiht employers right to bargain contract with employee; law passes rational basis test; law still fails

Front 29

Meyer v. Nebraska

Back 29

Nebraska forbids teaching in language other than Eng. under 8th grade; Meyers hire private German tutor for 10 yr old son; law is BS; learning is good, not bad; law infringed on individual rights

Front 30

West Coast Hotel v. Parrish

Back 30

Minimum wage placed on women in WA; had to review Atkins v. Children's Hospital; knocked law down and precedent; goes against "equality in bargaining"; abandon scrutiny of Eco. SDP

Front 31

Griswold v. Connecticut

Back 31

CN prohibits distribution of birth control methods/ info; case brings in idea of privacy; couple have every right; law unconstitutional

Front 32

Roe v. Wade

Back 32

TX bans abortion; infringes on right to privacy, fundamental right; law is knocked down; produce trimester scheme; police powers increase with each trimester

Front 33

Planned Parenthood v. Casey

Back 33

PENN. regulates abortion; issue of whether husband needs to be told of abortion; do not need to be, woman's right; switch tests from strict scrutiny to undue-burden - obstacle in the path of a woman seeking an abortion before the fetus attains viability; other regulations upheld

Front 34

Stenberg v. Carhart

Back 34

Issue on partial abortions; Nebraska bans D & X Abortions; use undue-burden test; law is unconstitutional since it inhibits woman's rights and did not allow for exception in cases of threatened health

Front 35

Gonzales v. Carhart

Back 35

Congress banned D & X abortion; pass under commerce clause (WTF???); since it was specific, it did not eliminate all abortion, and allowed abortions

Front 36

Washington v. Glucksberg

Back 36

Washington bans physician assisted suicide; claim that patients have right control their own fates, self-sovereignty; no right to this, but states can regulate it.

Front 37

Lawrence v. Texas

Back 37

Texas bans sodomy; law is unconstitutional; being homo is a liberty, right to choose your own lifestyle