Post on 07-Mar-2016
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MARBURY v. MADISON
CONSTITUTIONAL LAW I
Prof. Yanira Reyes Gil
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“We are under a Constitution, but the
Constitution is what the judges say it is”
-Charles Evans Hughes, 1907
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he de!ision "arties#
Histori!al ba!$ground Who was in %ower#
What was really the issue#
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Election of 1800
vs.
John Adams(Federalist)
Thomas Jefferson(Democratic-Republican)
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Under President Adams
John Marshall
&erved as &e!retary o' &tate
Had %layed a $ey role in sha%ing (rti!le ))) *+udi!ial ran!h in . & Constitution
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Chief Justie
John !arshall A"a#s$ Seretary of State %ea#e Chief Justie on
January &'( ')*' Tho#as Jefferson$s ousin Re+eate"ly onfir#e" the
su+re#ay of fe"eral la,over state la,
Su++orte" an e-+ansiverea"in of the enu#erate"+o,ers.
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And the outcome of the elections reveal thenext president of the United States is...
Thomas Jefferson(Democratic-Republican)
Wins the Election!!!
/e"eralists ha" not only lost the Presi"eny 0ut they also lost ontrol in Conress.
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November 1800
1letion2ay
March 1801
Ne, Presi"entTa3es Offie
/ear that /e"eralist Party ,ill no loner e-ist
/e"eralist Conress +asses the Ju"iiary
At of ')*' an" the Orani At of ')*'
The Act gae Adams the poer to appoint seeral ne federal "udgesand "ustices of the peace before he left office#
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President Adams signs appointments for many new federal udges. !is Secretary of State was instructed to deliver the
commissions.
"ut not all were delivered #efore
President Adams left o$ce.
!i"niht Ju"es
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"efore leaving o$ce% President Adams appoints &ohn 'arshall as (hief &ustice of the US Supreme (ourt
John Marshall
(!tually served as both &e!retary o' &tate and Chie' +usti!e o' the .&
&u%re/e Court in 101 'or "resident (da/s be'ore (da/s le't o''i!e
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)ow% we must introduce...
One of the 4u"es a++ointe" 0y
Presi"ent A"a#s that "i" not reeive
his o##ission
So #any o##issions( they oul" not all 0e
"elivere"(
inlu"in !ar0ury$s Co##ission555
William $arbur%
Senate A++rove"
Co##ission 2ra,n U+
Seretary of State Seal
Co##ission 2elivere" 0y
John !arshall 6S of S7 NO
Commission Checklist
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)ow President &e*erson ta+es o$ce and he learns of Adams,s attempt
to pac+ the (ourt with -ederalists. President &e*erson instructs his
Secretary of State &ames 'adison to refuse the appointments.
Presi"ent Tho#as Jefferson Seretary of State Ja#es !a"ison
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want my o#/// 'ar#ury appeals directly to the United
States Supreme (ourt to gain hisappointment. !e wanted the Supreme(ourt to issue an order forcing Secretaryof State &ames 'adison to give 'ar#uryhis (ommission.
"asis of argument he &udiciary Act2Enacted #y (ongress3 gives the Supreme(ourt the power to issue such an order.24riginal &urisdiction3
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5emem#er who is the (hief &ustice
John Marshall-ormer Secretary of State
Appointed as (hief &ustice #y President Adams in 1801
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(!!ording to 2arshall,
what are the issues#1 “Has the a%%li!ant a right to the !o//ission
he de/ands#”
What does it /ean#3 “)' he has a right, and that right has been
violated, do the laws o' this !ountry a''ord
hi/ a re/edy#4 “)' they a''ord hi/ a re/edy, is a mandamus
issuing 'ro/ this !ourt#
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How did the !ourt solved the 'irst two issues#
Was there a logi!al order#
5n the third issue, how did the !ourt de!ide# 6ationale#
What sour!es it used#
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6uestion 1 7oes 'ar#ury have a rightto the (ommission
And the 9nal answer to 6uestion 1 is:
&E'When the seal as affied
Chief Justie !arshall8
Where there is a right there must be a
remed%#
**$arbur% ins +uestion ,**
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6uestion ; 7oes 'ar#ury have the right tota+e the case to the Supreme (ourt
(4)-<(///
Judiciar% Act of
,./
The Su+re#e Court
has oriinal
4uris"ition in thisase.
0' 1onstitution
Article 3:
The Su+re#e Court
has oriinal 4uris"ition in s+eifi
ases only.
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&tatutes in !on'li!t
+udi!iary (!t o' 179, 14 “he &u%re/e Court shall also have a%%ellate
jurisdi!tion 'ro/ the !ir!uit !ourts and !ourts o'the several states, in the !ases herein a'ter
%rovided 'or8 and shall have %ower to issue writs
o' %rohibition to the distri!t !ourts and writs
o' /anda/us to any !ourts a%%ointed, or %ersons holding o''i!e, under the authority o' the
.nited &tates”
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&tatutes in !on'li!t
.& Const art ))), 3 Clause 3
)n all Cases a''e!ting (/bassadors, other %ubli!
2inisters and Consuls, and those in whi!h a &tate
shall be a "arty, the su%re/e Court shall have
original +urisdi!tion )n all the other Cases :within
the judi!ial %ower o' the .nited &tates;, the su%re/e
Court shall have a%%ellate +urisdi!tion, both as to<aw and =a!t, with su!h E>!e%tions, and under su!h
6egulations as the Congress shall /a$e
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6uestion ;And the 9nal answer to 6uestion ; is:
23The 1ommission cannot be granted#
The United States Constitution is the Supreme Law ofthe Land.
That setion of the Ju"iiary At is unonstitutional.
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(nalysis
+urisdi!tion ?id the !ourt had jurisdi!tion#
How did the !ourt justi'ied this de!ision#
Would i' have /ade a di''eren!e i' the !ourt de!ided this
issue 'irst#
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Unanimous decision n a unanimous decision% written #y &ustice
'arshall% the (ourt stated that 'ar#ury% indeed%had a right to his commission.
"ut it also ruled that the (ourt had no urisdiction 2or power3 in the case and could notforce &e*erson and 'adison to seat 'ar#ury. he
&udiciary Act of 1=8> gave the Supreme (ourt urisdiction% #ut the US (onstitution did not.
he (ourt,s 9rst responsi#ility is to uphold the(onstitution. ?hen there is a con@ict% the(onstitution prevails.
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(nalysis
Could have 2arshall de!ide di''erent on the
jurisdi!tion issue#
Why didn@t he de!ide that#
Could 2arbury have gone to an lower !ourt#
)s this de!ision !ontradi!tory# Why#
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Possi#le 5easons he (ommission was for a lower court
that expired in years% so it could have
expired #y the time the case was over.
he case could have ust #een a plot to
try to aggravate the con@ict #etween the
-ederalists and the 7emocraticB
5epu#licans.
'ar#ury could have moved on to a new
o#.
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(nalysis
Who won#
Charles Warren *The Supreme Court in the US History, 1933 argues the /ain %roble/ with 6e%ubli!ans *+e''erson with
this de!ision was that 2arshall de!ided the &u%re/e Court
!ould intervene with the e>e!utive
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&udicial 5eview he (ourt,s ruling meant the Supreme (ourt had the
power of udicial review. hat is% the (ourt had theright to review acts of (ongress and% #y extension%
actions of the President. f the (ourt found that a lawwas unconstitutional% it could invalidate the law.
'arshall argued that the (onstitution is theCsupreme law of the landD and that the Supreme(ourt has the 9nal say over the meaning of the
(onstitution. !e wrote% CIt is emphatically theprovince and duty of the judicial departmentto say what the law is.”
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(nalysis
)s judi!ial review !onstitutional#
?i''erent views on the ne!essity o' judi!ialreview
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2arshall@s argu/ents
he !onstitution is “the 'unda/ental and %ara/ountlaw o' the nation” )t was ne!essary to %resent the!onstitution as a regulatory do!u/ent and not /erely
de!laratory to deter/ineA “that an a!t o' thelegislature, re%ugnant to the Constitution, ) void”
he Constitution is a do!u/ent that !ourts !anre!ogniBe, inter%ret and a%%ly hus, !ourts have the
%ower to adjudi!ate HE !orre!t !onstitutionalinter%retation
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HE56 5= +.?)C)(< 6ED)EW
1 he %eo%le e>er!ised sovereignty when ado%tingConstitution
3 he Constitution is a 'unda/ental, enduring law
4 &tatutes, e>e!utive a!ts, and a!ts o' states are lesser lawsre'le!ting te/%orary, 'leeting views
=leeting laws and a!ts *even those re'le!ting /ajorities that!on'li!t with 'unda/ental law /ust be disregarded
F he &u%re/e Court is in the best %osition to inter%ret and %reserve the Constitution
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?hat actually happened to'ar#ury
'ar#ury went on to #ecome presidentof a #an+ in the eorgetown section
of ?ashington in 181F.
!e died in 18G% the same year as &ohn'arshall.
/ro#8 Year0oo3 '9:: Su+re#e Court ;istorial Soiety
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Case$s I#+at
<ey role in #a3in the Su+re#e Court
a se+arate 0ranh of overn#ent on
+ar ,ith Conress an" the e-eutive 1sta0lishe" Ju"iial Revie,
forever after the Su+re#e Court has ha"
the +o,er to rule la,s unonstitutional. No other la,s rule" unonstitutional for
another =* years > until ')=: