Week One: Marbury vs. Madison (1803) – Establishing the Principle of Judicial Review
“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”
This week we begin a new series focused on the US Supreme Court and the role it has played in the struggle for civil rights. This new series has three parts. First, we look at two cases that established the principle of judicial review of actions by federal (1803) and state (1817) government. Second, we look at a series of Supreme Court cases decided between 1857 and 1944. These cases made it easier for governments to deny individuals their rights and so each made the moral arc of the universe a little longer. Finally, we look at a series of cases decided between 1886 and 1983 that moved America forward toward justice. For this new series, we draw on some very short (thirty second to four-minute videos) from C-SPAN Classroom.
Without judicial review, America’s courts would have had little role to play in the struggle for civil rights. While not itself a civil rights case, the case of Marbury vs. Madison decided in 1803 created the legal underpinnings of judicial review. You may remember this case from American History or Civics classes. Marbury was one of the so-called “Midnight Judges” appointed by outgoing President John Adams in early 1801. Acting on behalf of the incoming Jefferson administration, new Secretary of State James Madison refused to give Marbury his commission effectively negating his appointment — or so Madison thought. There are six very short (thirty-second to four-minute) videos from C-SPAN Classroom about this case at the link below.
To get a complete picture including all the facts of the case, play all six videos. To zoom-in on just the decision and its implications for our system of law, play numbers four through six.
John Marshall, Chief Justice, and author of the Court’s opinion in Marbury.