1. LANDMARK Supreme Court Cases
APUSH Exam Review
LANDMARK Supreme Court Cases

2. Marbury v. Madison 1803 John Marshall  Judicial Review Established
“Midnight Judges”
Judicial Review Established

3. Fletcher v. Peck 1810 John Marshall
First Supreme Court case to rule a state law unconstitutional
Yazoo River land case from GA legislature
Protects legal contracts

4. McCulloch v. Maryland 1819 John Marshall
“the power to tax involves the power to destroy”
“the power to create implies a power to preserve”
1819
John Marshall
States cannot tax the federal government
Loose Construction
Necessary & Proper Clause
Implied Powers
Federalist Influence??? 

5. Dartmouth College v. Woodward
1819
John Marshall
State of NH wants to remove trustees from Dartmouth
Court rules to protect University charter b/c it is a contract
Later protects business from state interference but also restricts regulation
Alumnus Daniel Webster reportedly brought tears to Marshall’s eyes with his eloquent words about Dartmouth

6. Cohens v. Virginia 1821 John Marshall Illegal Lotto tickets sold in VA
The Supreme Court has the power to review the decisions of state courts.
How does this give more power to the federal government?

7. Gibbons v. Ogden 1824 John Marshall
The “Steamboat Case” – ferry b/w NY & NJ
Congress (Federal Gov’t) held the right to regulate interstate commerce not individual states.

8. Cherokee Nation v. Georgia - 1831 Worcester v. Georgia - 1832
"John Marshall has made his decision; now let him enforce it!“
Alleged words of President Andrew Jackson
Both John Marshall
Both cases deal with sovereignty of Indian Tribes in the U.S.
Cherokee: Tribes are dependent nations within the U.S. like a “ward to its guardian"
Worcester: basis for the Trail of Tears in 1838 

9. Prigg v. Pennsylvania 1842 Roger Taney  Fugitive Slave Case
Federal Fugitive Slave Act takes precedence over a PA law protecting escaped slaves

10. Dred Scott v. Sanford 1857 Roger Taney
Popular sovereignty also unconstitutional
1857
Roger Taney
Three rulings in the Dred Scott Case:
Slaves did not have rights of citizens
Scott had no claim to freedom b/c he was living in MO
MO Compromise was unconstitutional. Why?
Dred Scott

11. Plessy v. Ferguson 1896 Melville Fuller 
Homer Plessy & an Louisiana Train Car
“one drop rule”
Est. “separate but equal”
Legalized segregation in the United States

12. The Insular Cases 1901 – 1903 Melville Fuller
Does the Constitution follow the flag?
1901 – 1903
Melville Fuller
Necessary b/c of what “splendid little war”?
Deals with Constitutional status of Puerto Rico, the Philippines, & other island territories controlled by the U.S.
Do citizenship & the benefits thereof apply to territorial residents?
Full constitutional rights do not automatically apply to residents of newly acquired territories

13. Muller v. Oregon 1908 Melville Fuller
Supreme Court upheld Oregon law limiting the number of hours a woman could work in one day
Set precedent that progressive reforms could effectively target long work hours & poor conditions
Basically overturns Lochner v. New York
Lochner v. New York – Court rejects limits on single day work hours

14. Schenck v. United States
Associate Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. “Clear & present danger” majority opinion
1919
Edward D. White
Socialist Schenck convicted of violating the WWI era Espionage Act of 1917
Court rules the circumstances of wartime permit greater restrictions on free speech than would be allowable during peacetime. 

15. Korematsu v. United States
1944
Harlan F. Stone
Constitutionality of WWII Japanese Internment Camps
Supreme Court rules Executive Order 9066 is constitutional b/c the need to protect against espionage outweighed the individual rights, of Japanese Americans.
Similarities to the Schenck case?

16. The Warren Court
Chief Justice Warren (1953 – 1969) greatly expanded individual freedoms
Earl Warren 
Brown v. Board of Education, perhaps most significant ruling.
Required criminal courts to provide free legal counsel
(Gideon v. Wainwright)
Right to a lawyer during questioning
People must be read their Miranda rights before questioning
(Miranda v. Arizona )
EQ: How did the Warren Court expand the individual rights of American citizens?

17. Brown v. Board of Education
Future Justice Thurgood Marshall argues before the court on behalf of the NAACP
1954
Earl Warren
Epochal Supreme Court ruling strikes down “separate but equal” overturning Plessy v. Ferguson
Court orders state compliance “with all deliberate speed”
"separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.“ – unanimous decision of the Warren Court

18. Mapp v. Ohio 1961 Earl Warren 
Evidence gained without a legitimate search warrant is not permissible in court
4th Amendment cited -protection from “unreasonable searches & seizures”

19. Gideon v. Wainwright 1963 Earl Warren
Per the 6th Amendment, state courts must provide legal counsel in criminal cases for defendants who cannot afford to retain a lawyer.

20. Miranda v. Arizona 1966 Earl Warren
Ernesto Miranda
1966
Earl Warren
Criminal suspects must be informed of their “right to remain silent” & the right to an attorney
Any evidence before a suspect is informed of these rights is impermissible
“Miranda Rights”

21. Tinker v. Des Moines 1969 Earl Warren
Ruling defined the constitutional rights of students in U.S. public schools
Schools can only limit speech when it is shown to be harmful to the educational process
Tinker siblings Court’s ruling leads to the “Tinker Test” 

22. Roe v. Wade Warren Burger 1973
Perhaps the most controversial Supreme Court case in U.S. History
Ignites religious, moral, & philosophical debates that still occur to this day
Ruling disallows many state restrictions on abortion
Roe v. Wade effectively legalizes most early term abortions in the U.S.

23. United States v. Nixon 1974 Warren Burger
At the height of the Watergate investigation the Supreme Court rules no person (even the President) is above the law
The President cannot claim executive privilege and withhold evidence that is relevant in a criminal trial.
The Supreme Court rejects President Nixon's claim to "an absolute, unqualified Presidential privilege of immunity from judicial process under all circumstances."

24. California v. Bakke 1978 Warren Burger
In 1978 Allan Bakke  applied to University of California at Davis medical school. The school had a quota – based affirmative-action plan that reserved 16 out of 100 spots for minorities.
Bakke sued for admission arguing that he had been discriminated against based on his race.
Reverse Discrimination???
In a 5 to 4 ruling the Supreme Court held that quotas were illegal and Bakke was admitted but…race could still be used as one of many factors for admission