CONSTITUTIONAL LAW ROSTRON SPRING 2015
I. The Origins of the Constitution and Judicial Review
A. History
1. Magna Carta (1215) – lords rebelled in England; this was supposed to be the remedy; still had war
2. English Declaration of Rights (1689) – took the Magna Carta further; more rights for lords
3. Declaration of Independence (1776) – started idea of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”
4. Articles of Confederation (written 1777, ratified 1781) – not strong; loose (“Firm League of Friendship”)
5. U.S. Constitution (written 1787, ratified 1789) – stronger national government; legislative, executive, and judicial branches; had to be approved by 9 of 13 states
a. Federalists – supported Constitution
b. Anti-federalists – against Constitution
6. Bill of Rights (written 1789, ratified 1791)
B. Political Parties in the Beginning
1. Federalist Party
2. Democratic-Republican Party
C. Political Influences on the Branches of Government Early On
1. Legislative – Federalists; then lost seats to Dem.-Rep.; became a lame duck because Federalists were still there in a small capacity
2. Executive – Adams (Federalist); then Jefferson (Dem.-Rep.)
3. Judicial – Federalists
D. Marbury v. Madison
1. Appointment of Marbury as judge was signed and sealed by former president Adams, but not delivered on time
2. Marshall already involved in case – was Secretary of State earlier and assigned to deliver appointments of judges, Marbury being one of them
3. Jefferson administration decided they wouldn’t honor Marbury’s appointment after there was a dispute as to whether Marshall had failed to deliver the appointment on time
4. Marbury sought original jurisdiction to issue writ of mandamus (by SCOTUS) to order then Secretary of State Madison to carry out appointment as judge signed and sealed by former president Adams
5. Rule: The Supreme Court of the United States has the authority to review laws and legislative acts to determine whether they comply with the U.S. Constitution.
6. The Court held that the Judiciary Act of 1789 violates Article III of the Constitution.
a. Marbury lost because lack of jurisdiction
7. Significance: first time something was struck down as unconstitutional
II. Early Cases About Federal and State Power
A. Government Powers
1. Separation of Powers = division of authority among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches
2. Federalism = division of authority among the federal, state, and local government levels
B. Individual Rights – ex. Equal Protection Clause
C. 2 Big Powers Vested in Government at the Time
1. Declare war
2. Foreign diplomacy
D. Domestic Government Responsibilities
1. Postage (mail)
2. Weights
3. Exchange rate
E. Federal Government – can only do what Constitution allows it to do
F. Residual Power – go to state and/or local government
G. Questions to Consider
1. What authorizes federal government to do this?
2. Does it violate individual rights?
H. Fletcher v. Peck
1. Georgia’s legislature and governor participated in a massive fraud, accepting bribes in exchange for passing the Yazoo Act, under which the state sold millions of acres of land in the Yazoo River country (now Alabama and Mississippi) to private companies at absurdly low prices.
2. Robert Fletcher ended up purchasing one of the pieces of land that was originally purchased under the Yazoo Act.
3. Fletcher brought suit, claiming that the previous owner sold him the land without having valid and clear title to it.
4. Individual rights issue
5. Rule: A law that negates all property rights established under an earlier law is unconstitutional for violating the Contract Clause (Article I, Section 10) of the United States Constitution.
5. The Court held that the estate having passed into the hands of purchasers for valuable consideration, without notice, the state of Georgia was restrained from passing a law whereby the estate so purchased could be impaired and rendered null and void.
I. McCulloch v. Maryland
1. In 1816, Congress passed an act incorporating, for the second time, a Bank of the United States.
2. The Bank established a branch in the city of Baltimore, Maryland.
3. In 1818, the general assembly of Maryland passed an act imposing a tax on all banks, or branches thereof, operating in but nor chartered by the state of Maryland.
4. James McCulloch, the cashier of the national bank’s branch in Baltimore, did not pay the $15,000 tax demanded by the treasurer of the state of Maryland.
5. Obamacare of the time – national bank was a hot issue
a. Northerners – manufacturing, financial – favored national bank (strong central government)
b. Southerners – agricultural – against national bank (states’ rights)
c. Foreshadowing of Civil War
6. Necessary and Proper Clause (B-5.8)
7. Rules:
a. Congress may enact laws that are necessary and proper to carry
ry only in areas which Union controlled
b. Strange compromise – not all Northerners were thrilled with fighting and possibly dying over slavery
c. Black men able to serve in Union army
B. Barron v. Baltimore
1. Barron owned an extensive and highly productive wharf enjoying the deepest water in the Baltimore harbor.
2. In paving and adopting new grades of streets, the city diverted certain streams of water which flow into the harbor.
3. As a result, the water was rendered so shallow that it ceased to be useful for large vessels and became of little or no value.
4. Fifth Amendment issue
5. Rule: The provision in the Fifth Amendment, declaring that private property shall not be taken for public use without just compensation, is intended solely as a limitation on the exercise of power by the government of the United States, and is not applicable to legislation of the states.
6. Marshall – bill of rights drafted to restrict federal government, not state and local government
7. Barron loses case because of this interpretation
C. Dred Scott v. Sanford
1. Dred Scott was a slave
2. Lost in state court after widow owner wouldn’t allow Scott to buy his freedom
3. Widow then married an abolitionist
a. Would have allowed Scott to buy his freedom, but wanted to have a bigger impact
b. Transferred Scott to brother of widow and filed suit in federal court
4. Taney – generally opposed to slavery, but aligned himself with the South
a. Saw abolitionism as Northern aggression
5. Rules:
a. A Negro may not become a citizen of the United States though he might be given rights in a particular state. (now void obviously)
b. There is no constitutional provision that gave Congress the power to pass the Missouri Compromise; thus, it is unconstitutional and void.
6. Holdings: (individual rights)
a. Dred Scott can’t be an American citizen. Therefore, he has no right to sue.
b. The Missouri Compromise is unconstitutional.
7. Significance: only second time the Supreme Court struck down an act of Congress
8. Taney – thought Scott decision would help issue, but it only made issue worse
