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Marbury V. Madison

Bradyn C. Detwiler College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Grand Canyon University JUS-325: The Adjudication Function Professor Harris January 16, 2022

2 Marbury V. Madison The Marbury v. Madison case is one of the most important cases in the history of the Supreme Court. This case decided that federal laws that violate the US Constitution are invalid and considered unconstitutional. It also allowed judges to determine if the federal laws are Constitutional or not. This is known as judicial review (Fawbush, 2021). Historical Background This case starts all the way back in 1800. John Adams had just lost the 1800 presidential election to Thomas Jefferson. One of the last actions John Adams did before he left office was appointing members of his political party to judicial positions. This action would allow his party to maintain some power while Jefferson was in office. Some of these new appointees were not given their commissions while Adams was still in office. Thomas Jefferson instructed his Secretary of State to not serve the commissions to the new appointees. One of these men was William Marbury. Marbury sued James Madison for not serving him his commission. He asked the Supreme Court to issue a “writ of mandamus” so that Madison would be forced to hand over his commission (Fawbush, 2021). John Marshall Rational The newly appointed Chief Justice John Marshall overlooked this case. He determined that Marbury did have a right to his commission and Jefferson was violating his rights, but he also determined that the Supreme Court did not have the power to issue a “writ of mandamus”. The Judiciary Act of 1789 originally allowed for this, but Marshall found that it violated Article III, Section 2 of the Constitution (Fawbush, 2021). No laws passed by Congress can overlook the US Constitution.

3 Significance of Marbury v. Madison When this case occurred, the United States and the Constitution were still very new. Many kinks still needed to be worked out and cases like this helped do just that. This case paved the way for what is known as judicial review. Judicial review allows the Supreme Court to review any law passed by Congress to determine if is following the Constitution (Blokhina, 2019). Before Marbury v. Madison, there were laws that conflicted with the Constitution. The Constitution is the supreme law of the land that oversees everything. Laws passed by Congress cannot contradict with the Constitution. The introduction of judicial review fixes that issue. Intent of Constitution The decision is keeping with the intent of the Constitution for the role of the judiciary. This is because this case clearly identifies the roles for the judiciary. As a result of this case, it grants the Supreme Court the power to determine whether a law is abiding by the Constitution. Marshall declared the Supreme Court as an interpreter of the Constitution. They would not need to use the power of judicial review for nearly a century after Marbury v. Madison (Urofsky). Conclusion Marbury v. Madison was one of the most important cases in Supreme Court history. It introduced judicial review so that the Supreme Court can declare acts of Congress as unconstitutional. Today, we still see the impact that Marbury v. Madison has on the country. There are always laws that or mandates that get shut down because they go against the Constitution.

4 References Blokhina, K. (2019). Judicial Review. Legal Information Institute. Retrieved January 2022, from https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/judicial_review Fawbush, J. (2021). Marbury v. Madison Case summary: What you need to know. Findlaw. Retrieved January 2022, from https://supreme.findlaw.com/supreme-courtinsights/marbury-v--madison-case-summary--what-you-need-to-know.html Urofsky, M. I. (n.d.). Marbury v. Madison. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved January 2022, from https://www.britannica.com/event/Marbury-v-Madison...