Marbury vs Madison
Storyboard Text
- In 1800, President John Adams ran against Thomas Jefferson for president, but lost. In his last weeks of office he appointed some men to be judges, but Jefferson became president before the commissions could be sent, and didn't let them to be sent.
- Marbury thought this was unfair so he asked the supreme court to issue a writ of mandamus
- Usually he wouldn't be able to start at the supreme court, but in 1789, congress passed a law that allowed people to start at the supreme court if they wanted a writ of mandamus.
- The supreme court agreed that Marbury should receive his commission, but disagreed that they had the power to issue the writ. The constitution lists specific cases that can start at the supreme court, so the 1789 law was unconstitutional.
- This case is important in U.S. history because it was the first time the supreme court considered an act of congress unconstitutional. This is called judicial review, which is part of the powers the judiciary branch has
- An example of this today would be if congress made a law that allowed soldiers to be quartered in private homes, and the supreme court used judicial review to rule it unconstitutional
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