The Supreme Court in American History

Article III of the Constitution vested the Supreme Court with the judicial power of the United States. However, it did not establish the form of the Court. Congress did that with the Judiciary Act of 1789. In addition, the Congress authorized the Court to determine the constitutionality of state legislation, filling in a gap in the Constitution. On the other hand, Congress was not about to give the Court the power to nullify its own legislation. This was appropriated by the Court itself in what should have been a case involving minor issues. Chief Justice John Marshall used the opportunity presented by the case to establish the Court's power to determine the constitutionality of Congressional acts. In Marbury v. Madison, Marshall held that Congress had acted unconstitutionally in giving the Court the power of mandamus in original jurisdiction. Marshall based his reasoning on Article III's grant of judicial power to the Court; Article VI's Supremacy Clause, placing the Constitution at the top of the legal hierarchy; and on English and American legal traditions giving courts the power to interpret the law and nullify legislative acts.

The Judiciary Act of 1789 also established the lower federal courts. Actually, this was the main impetus for this bill was the creation of a federal court system to solve a growing problem in the legal system. The earlier Articles of Confederation had created an anarchic situation in which the

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eading up to the Civil War, the Court exercised restraint in asserting federal control over the states. This was in contrast to the Marshall court, which was accused of expanding federal and Court power beyond that intended by the framers of the Constitution. Under Chief Justice Roger Taney, the Court exercised great restraint in its interpretation of powers granted by the Constitution. It created the police power doctrine, which said that the Constitution reserved to the states powers over internal police and improvements which are "necessary to their well-being and prosperity." This power was assumed to be a part of a state's sovereignty, since its purpose is to maintain minimal standards of health, safety, and welfare for its population. In addition, the Taney Court established the political question doctrine. This holds that certain controversies and issues are beyond the scope of the Court to judge. Such controversies can involve questions of policy, expediency, and the possible refusal of the other branches to enforce the ruling. The era of federal restraint ended with the Civil War. The war itself concerned the issue of states' rights versus federal power. With the end of the war, the Thirteenth Amendment was p

Category: Government - T