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John Jay
First Chief Justice of the United States (1789 - 95).
Served as the President of the Continental Congress from 1778 to 1779.
Co-wrote the Federalist Papers.
Leader of the new Federalist Party and was the Governor of New York State from 1795 to 1801. -
John Marshall
Chief Justice of the United States, serving from January 31, 1801, until his death in 1835.
Served in the United States House of Representatives from 1799-1800, and was Secretary of State under President John Adams from 1800-1801.
Was from the Commonwealth of Virginia and a leader of the Federalist Party.
Worked the case Worchester v. Georgia with the Cherokee Indians being forced to leave their land.
Established that the federal courts are entitled to exercise judicial review. -
Creation of Supreme court
Judiciary Act of 1789 called for a Supreme Court.
Met in the Merchants Exchange Building in New York City, then the Nation's Capital. The first Supreme Court was made up of:
Chief Justice:
John Jay Associate Justices:
John Rutledge,
William Cushing,
James Wilson,
John Blair, and
James Iredell. Spent its first session organizing itself and determining its own powers and duties. -
Marbury v. Madison
Resulted from a petition to the Supreme Court by William Marbury, who had been appointed by President John Adams as Justice of the Peace in the District of Columbia but whose commission was not subsequently delivered. Marbury petitioned the Supreme Court to force James Madison to deliver the documents, but the court denied Marbury's petition, declaring his claim, based on Judiciary Act of 1789, was unconstitutional. Established the concept of judicial review, & defined "checks and balances." -
Fletcher v Peck
In 1795, the Georgia state legislature passed a land grant awarding territory to four companies. The following year, however, the legislature voided the law and declared all claims under it to be invalid. In 1800, John Peck acquired land that was part of the original legislative grant. He then sold the land to Robert Fletcher three years later, claiming that past sales of the land had been legitimate. Fletcher argued that Peck had no legal right to sell the land. -
Darthmouth college v Woodward
In 1816, the New Hampshire legislature attempted to change Dartmouth College--a privately funded institution--into a state university. The legislature changed the school's corporate charter by transferring the control of trustee appointments to the governor. In an attempt to regain authority over the resources of Dartmouth College, the old trustees filed suit against William H. Woodward, who sided with the new appointees. -
McCulloch v Maryland
In 1816, Congress chartered The Second Bank of the United States. In 1818, the state of Maryland passed legislation to impose taxes on the bank. James W. McCulloch, the cashier of the Baltimore branch of the bank, refused to pay the tax. -
Gibbons v. Ogden
A New York state law gave two individuals the exclusive right to operate steamboats on waters within state jurisdiction. Laws like this one were duplicated elsewhere which led to friction as some states would require foreign (out-of-state) boats to pay substantial fees for navigation privileges. In this case a steamboat owner who did business between New York and New Jersey challenged the monopoly that New York had granted, forcing him to obtain a special permit to navigate on its waters. -
Worcester v. Georgia
Samuel Worcester was targeted by Georgia for his opposition against Cherokee removal. (Georgia law required living in Cherokee Indian territories to have a state license.) The court ruled that the Cherokee nation was a "distinct community" with self-government "in which the laws of Georgia can have no force," establishing the doctrine that the national government of the United States, and not individual states, had authority in Indian affairs.
