1. The Story of Judicial Review
Marbury v. Madison
The US Constitution
The Judiciary Act
The Story of Judicial Review

2. What if……
a school rule was passed that did not allow students to ask any questions during school hours?
And…….
there was no way to challenge the rule if you thought it was unfair?

3. Constitutional Structure
Federal Government – Three Branches
Article I Article II Article III
Legislative Executive Judicial
Article III
Section I: “The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish….”
Checks and Balances/Separation of Powers.

4. The Judicial Branch Article Three
When the U.S. Constitution was written, there were still lots of questions about the judicial branch. In 1789, shortly after the Constitution was ratified, Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789, which established the federal court system.
Congress created a Supreme Court, three circuit courts, and 13 district courts. There was one district court for each of the 13 states.
The Constitution did not specify the number of justices that could be appointed to the Supreme Court. Through the Judiciary Act, though, Congress provided for a Chief Justice and five Associate Justices.

5. (Democratic-Republican)
Election of 1800
vs.
John Adams
(Federalist)
Thomas Jefferson
(Democratic-Republican)

6. Served as Secretary of State
Under President Adams
John Marshall
Served as Secretary of State
Had played a key role in shaping Article III (Judicial Branch) in U S Constitution

7. (Democratic-Republican)
And the outcome of the elections reveal the next president of the United States is...
Thomas Jefferson
(Democratic-Republican)
Wins the Election!!!
Federalists had not only lost the Presidency but they also lost control in Congress.

8. New President Takes Office
Time Lag...between election day and the oath of office for the new President
November 1800
Election Day
March 1801
New President Takes Office
Fear that Federalist Party will no longer exist
Federalist Congress passes the Judiciary
Act of 1801 and the Organic Act of 1801
Compare to today.
The Act gave Adams the power to appoint several new federal judges and justices of the peace before he left office.

9. President Adams signs appointments for many new federal judges
President Adams signs appointments for many new federal judges. His Secretary of State was instructed to deliver the commissions.
But not all were delivered before President Adams left office.
Midnight Judges

10. Before leaving office, President Adams appoints John Marshall as Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court
John Marshall
Actually served as both Secretary of State and Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court in 1801 for President Adams before Adams left office.

11. Now, we must introduce...
One of the judges appointed by
President Adams that did not receive his commission
Senate Approved
Commission Drawn Up
Secretary of State Seal
Commission Delivered by John Marshall (S of S) NO
Commission Checklist
William Marbury
So many commissions, they could not all be delivered,
including Marbury’s Commission!!!

12. Now President Jefferson takes office and he learns of Adams’s attempt to pack the Court with Federalists. President Jefferson instructs his Secretary of State James Madison to refuse the appointments.
President Thomas Jefferson Secretary of State James Madison

13. I want my job!!!
Marbury appeals directly to the United States Supreme Court to gain his appointment. He wanted the Supreme Court to issue an order forcing Secretary of State James Madison to give Marbury his Commission.
Basis of argument: The Judiciary Act (Enacted by Congress) gives the Supreme Court the power to issue such an order. (Original Jurisdiction)

14. Marbury Sues… Goes to the U. S. Supreme Court
John Marshall
William Cushing
William Patterson
Samuel Chase
Bushrod Washington
Alfred Moore

15. Remember who is the Chief Justice
John Marshall
Former Secretary of State
Appointed as Chief Justice by President Adams in 1801

16. Questions before the Court
Does Marbury have a right to the Commission?
Question 2:
Did Marbury have a right to take the case to the United States Supreme Court?
(He did so because of the Judiciary Act of 1789)

17. Answer the Questions
Students should answer these two questions individually first. Then assemble in groups of six students (select one to be Chief Justice in each group for this exercise)
Remind students that they need to review Article III of the US Constitution and compare to the section of the Judiciary Act of 1789 in making their decisions.
Show the questions that follow on the next screen.

18. Questions before the Court
Does Marbury have a right to the Commission?
Question 2:
Did Marbury have a right to take the case to the United States Supreme Court?
(He did so because of the Judiciary Act of 1789)
Provide ten to fifteen minutes and then ask students for their answers and reasoning. Then proceed to show answers.

19. Question 1: Does Marbury have a right to the Commission?
And the final answer to Question 1 is…
YES
When the seal was affixed
Chief Justice Marshall:
Where there is a right, there must be a remedy.
**Marbury wins Question 1**

20. Question 2: Does Marbury have the right to take the case to the Supreme Court?
CONFLICT!!!
Judiciary Act of 1789
The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction in this case.
US Constitution
Article 3:
The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction in specific cases only.

21. The Commission cannot be granted.
Question 2
And the final answer to Question 2 is… NO
The Commission cannot be granted.
The United States Constitution is the Supreme Law of the Land.
That section of the Judiciary Act is unconstitutional.

22. Unanimous decision
In a unanimous decision, written by Justice Marshall, the Court stated that Marbury, indeed, had a right to his commission.
But it also ruled that the Court had no jurisdiction (or power) in the case and could not force Jefferson and Madison to seat Marbury. The Judiciary Act of 1789 gave the Supreme Court jurisdiction, but the US Constitution did not.
The Court’s first responsibility is to uphold the Constitution. When there is a conflict, the Constitution prevails.

23. The Supremacy Clause (Article VI, Section 2)
United States Constitution
If there is a conflict between a lower law and a higher one, the higher one “wins.”
Acts of Congress
The U.S. Constitution is the “Supreme Law of the Land.”
State Constitutions
Highlight the US Constitution as the highest law in the land and the concept of federalism.
State Statutes (laws)
City and County Laws

24. Judicial Review
The Court’s ruling meant the Supreme Court had the power of judicial review. That is, the Court had the right to review acts of Congress and, by extension, actions of the President. If the Court found that a law was unconstitutional, it could invalidate the law.
Marshall argued that the Constitution is the “supreme law of the land” and that the Supreme Court has the final say over the meaning of the Constitution. He wrote, “It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is.”

25. Judicial Review
The power of the courts to review the actions of other branches or levels of government; especially the power of the courts to declare laws and actions of the executive and legislative branches of government invalid if they are found to contradict the US Constitution.

26. Marbury could have sought relief in a lower court first,
What Happened Next?
Marbury could have sought relief in a lower court first,
but…
He did not.
WHY???

27. Possible Reasons
The Commission was for a lower court that expired in 3 years, so it could have expired by the time the case was over.
The case could have just been a plot to try to aggravate the conflict between the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans.
Marbury could have moved on to a new job.

28. What actually happened to Marbury?
Marbury went on to become president of a bank in the Georgetown section of Washington in He died in 1835, the same year as John Marshall.
From: Yearbook 1977 Supreme Court Historical Society