Thomas Jefferson and John Marshall: Interpreting the Constitution

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Thomas Jefferson and John Marshall: Interpreting the Constitution c THOMAS JEFFERSON AND JOHN MARSHALL: INTERPRETING THE CONSTITUTION Moderator Donald Scarinci, Esq. Scarinci Hollenbeck LLC (Lyndhurst) Speakers Steve Edenbo (Portraying Thomas Jefferson) American Historical Theater (Philadelphia, PA) Doug Thomas (Portraying John Marshall) American Historical Theater (Philadelphia, PA) In cooperation with the New Jersey State Bar Association Senior Lawyers Special Committee and the New Jersey State Bar Foundation S0115.16 © 2016 New Jersey State Bar Association. All rights reserved. Any copying of material herein, in whole or in part, and by any means without written permission is prohibited. Requests for such permission should be sent to NJICLE, a Division of the New Jersey State Bar Association, New Jersey Law Center, One Constitution Square, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901-1520. Table of Contents Page Thomas Jefferson and John Marshall: Interpreting the Constitution 1 Biographies of the Participants 3 Thomas Jefferson/Steven Edenbo 5 John Marshall/Doug Thomas 7 Donald Scarinci 9 Timeline of the Presidency of Thomas Jefferson and John Marshall 11 Relevant Constitutional Provisions 17 Annotations to the Constitution 19 Commerce Clause 19 Necessary & Proper Clause 23 Contract Clause 24 Judicial Review 26 Supremacy Clause 29 Relevant Decisions from 1800 to 1836 31 Talbot v. Seeman: The Power to Declare War 33 Supreme Court Review of the Affordable Care Act Began in 1803 35 Charming Betsy and the Law of Nations 37 Fletcher v. Peck and the Contract Clause 39 U.S. v. Hudson and Goodwin: Jurisdiction Over Criminal Matters 41 Livingston v. Van Ingen: NY Appeals Court Tackles Commerce Clause 42 Martin v. Hunter’s Lessee: The Supreme Court’s Authority Over State Courts 44 McCulloch v. Maryland: The Necessary and Proper Clause 46 Sturges v. Crowinshield: Constitutionality of State Bankruptcy Laws 48 Dartmouth College v. Woodward: The Contracts Clause 49 Cohen v. Virginia: U.S. Supreme Court Trumps State Courts 51 Johnson v. M’Hintosh: The Power to Grant Land 53 Corfield v. Coryell: The Privileges and Immunity Clause 55 Gibbons v. Ogden: The Commerce Clause 57 Osborn v. Bank of the United States Clarifies Reach of Federal Jurisdiction 59 Wayman v. Southard: The Limits of Non-Delegation 61 Brown v. Maryland: Import Taxes on Foreign Goods 63 Ogden v. Saunders: The Contracts Clause 65 Martin v. Mott: The President’s Power Under the Militia Clause 67 Weston v. City Council of Charleston: What is a “Suit?” 69 Willson v. Black Bird Creek Marsh Company: The Dormant Commerce Clause 70 Craig v. Missouri Interprets Prohibition of Bills of Credit Under Article I 72 Cherokee Nation v. Georgia: The Rights of Indian “Nations” 74 Worcester v. Georgia: Indian Sovereignty and the States 76 Barron ex rel. Tiernan v. Mayor of Baltimore: The Limits of the Bill of Rights 78 Biographies of Great Americans 79 Henry Baldwin 81 John Blair, Jr. 83 Samuel Chase 85 William Cushing 87 Gabriel Duvall 89 Oliver Ellsworth 91 James Iredell 93 John Jay 95 Thomas Johnson 97 William Johnson 99 Henry Brockholst Livingston 101 John Marshall 102 John McLean 104 Alfred Moore 106 William Paterson 108 John Rutledge 110 Joseph Story 112 Roger B. Taney 114 Smith Thompson 115 Thomas Todd 117 Robert Trimble 118 Bushrod Washington 119 James Moore Wayne 121 James Wilson 123 .
Recommended publications
  • Grand Inquests: the Historic Impeach- Ments of Justice
    GRAND INQUESTS: THE HISTORIC IMPEACH­ MENTS OF JUSTICE SAMUEL CHASE AND PRESIDENT ANDREW JOHNSON. By William H. Rehnquist.' William Morrow & Co., Inc. 1992. Reissued in paperback, 1999. Pp. 304. $12.00. Michael J. Gerhard( INTRODUCTION Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist's is a book that was written well ahead of its time-almost seven years, to be precise. Written in 1992, Grand Inquests explores the backgrounds, de­ tails, historical contexts, and constitutional significance of the two most important Senate impeachment trials in the nineteenth century-those of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase in 1805 and President Andrew Johnson in 1868. Presumably, Chief Jus­ tice Rehnquist expected at the time that he published the book that the topic would be a safe one for a sitting chief justice, for it would then have seemed highly unlikely that no similar such trial would have been on the horizon during the Chief Justice's ten­ ure or lifetime. Thus, Chief Justice Rehnquist could have rea­ sonably expected that he could write about the Chase and John­ son impeachment trials without ever having to confront the issues involved in them (or like proceedings) in his formal ca­ pacity. We now know that Chief Justice Rehnquist's interest in im­ peachment was prescient. The book became enormously signifi­ cant when, almost seven years after its publication, the House of Representatives impeached President William Jefferson Clinton for perjury and obstruction of justice on December 19, 1998, and in January and February of 1999, the United States Senate con­ ducted an impeachment trial of President Clinton with none other than Chief Justice William Rehnquist presiding.
    [Show full text]
  • The Political Effects of the Addition of Judgeships to the United States Supreme Court Following Electoral Realignments
    A Compliant Court: The Political Effects of the Addition of Judgeships to the United States Supreme Court Following Electoral Realignments Lauren Paige Joyce Judson Thesis submitted to the faculty of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of: Master of Arts In Political Science Jason P. Kelly, Chair Wayne D. Moore Karen M. Hult August 7, 2014 Blacksburg, Virginia Keywords: Judicial Politics, Electoral Realignment, Alteration to the Supreme Court Copyright 2014, Lauren J. Judson A Compliant Court: The Political Effects of the Addition of Judgeships to the United States Supreme Court Following Electoral Realignments Lauren J. Judson ABSTRACT During periods of turmoil when ideological preferences between the federal branches of government fail to align, the relationship between the three quickly turns tumultuous. Electoral realignments especially have the potential to increase tension between the branches. When a new party replaces the “old order” in both the legislature and the executive branches, the possibility for conflict emerges with the Court. Justices who make decisions based on old regime preferences of the party that had appointed them to the bench will likely clash with the new ideological preferences of the incoming party. In these circumstances, the president or Congress may seek to weaken the influence of the Court through court-curbing methods. One example Congress may utilize is changing the actual size of the Supreme The size of the Supreme Court has increased four times in United States history, and three out of the four alterations happened after an electoral realignment. Through analysis of Supreme Court cases, this thesis seeks to determine if, after an electoral realignment, holdings of the Court on issues of policy were more congruent with the new party in power after the change in composition as well to examine any change in individual vote tallies of the justices driven by the voting behavior of the newly appointed justice(s).
    [Show full text]
  • United States V. Hodges: Treason, Jury Trials, and the War of 1812
    FOREWORD: Title United States v. Hodges: Treason, Jury Trials, and the War of 1812 Author Jennifer Elisa Smith Document Type Article Publication Date 2016 Keywords Legal history, treason, jury, Justice Gabriel Duvall, War of 1812 Abstract In August 1814 a number of British soldiers were arrested as stragglers or deserters in the town of Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Upon learning of the soldiers’ absences the British military took local physician, Dr. William Beanes, and two other residents into custody and threatened to burn Upper Marlboro if the British soldiers were not returned. John Hodges, a local attorney, arranged the soldiers’ return to the British military. For this, Hodges was charged with high treason for “adhering to [the] enemies, giving them aid and comfort.” The resulting jury trial was presided over by Justice Gabriel Duvall, a Supreme Court Justice and Prince Georges County native, and highlights how the crime of treason was viewed in early American culture and the role of the jury as deciders of the facts and the law in early American jurisprudence. Contextually, Hodges’ trial took place against the backdrop of the War of 1812 and was informed by the 1807 treason trial of Aaron Burr. Disciplines Law, constitutional history, legal history 1 UNITED STATES V. HODGES:1 TREASON, JURY TRIALS, AND THE WAR OF 1812 Jennifer Elisa Smith INTRODUCTION In August 1814 as British forces left a burned and ravaged Washington, D.C. a number of British soldiers were arrested as stragglers or deserters in the town of Upper Marlboro in Prince Georges County Maryland.2 Upon learning of the soldiers’ absences the British military took local physician, Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • Reminiscences of the United States Supreme Court
    YALE LAW JO URNAL. REMINISCENCES OF THE UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT. On motion of Reverdy Johnson, at one time Attorney-General and afterward Senator in Congress from Maryland, I was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court in 1865. Salmon P. Chase was then Chief Justice, and the associates were James M. Wayne, Robert C. Grier, Noah H. Swayne, David Davis, Samuel Nelson, Nathan Clifford, Samuel F. Miller and Stephen J. Field. All of these, ex- cepting Justice Field,* are now dead. I was in Washington at the inauguration of Franklin Pierce in 1853 and attended some of the sessions of the Supreme Court at that time. That court then con- sisted of Roger B. Taney, Chief Justice; John McLean, James M. Wayne, John Catron, Peter V. Daniel, Samuel Nelson, Robert C. Grier, Benjamin R. Curtis and John A. Campbell, associates, none of whom are now living. I never saw Taney, Catron or Daniel afterward, and have no very distinct impressions as to Catron or Daniel, but Chief Justice Taney was a noticeable man and his ap- pearance is still daguerreotyped upon my memory. He was a tall, angular and exceedingly slim man. Apparently there was little or no flesh upon his bones and his face was deeply furrowed by the ravages of time. His eyes surmounted by shaggy eyebrows were deeply set under a remarkably low forehead. There was a rough and rugged distinctness about all his features. He was appointed Chief Justice in 1836 and died in office when he was 88 years old. He was 8o years of age when he delivered the opinion of the court in the celebrated Dred Scott case.
    [Show full text]
  • Caqe ,T-)65 61
    eiF C714rd FF27JAIKL,ti Ckw.i,ZSI CAqE ,t-)65_61,. ;bo'7qra TAE C3h11© I-SuPRLrnE COi.I fF,a,qRh aF- CoFnmi SSiWER.SI 1N fvE: LE VEF2T K. PdE3221't2^. AKC^N.d^l ^f^r's^'L., t.^SES. A- LLCyt:LSTiN P. oSUEL^Sa7.ReGA(a.OGi 115% 511 M.MArN ST ./LMZc^ni.e^l1 4431U< .4AOa.... pE^,' 0 6 Z006 LAWREIJGE R. Sin^TiJ.FS©.,REG.NO.a©2902Es1 ONE CflSCA6E PLZ.. 7t1(.FL..AKR-dN.ON 44 3ej8, MARCIA J NIENGEL, CLERI( AEFTS.,APLEES..RES.... SUPREME CUF;! OF ILELATQiZ.AP('ELLAnfT, PLAu.ITiF'F LEVErc'l` K,C►RIPFrn! MOi IGaI FdR r-N7RY FdOR ALLEGE LdA1rQI.ITN6kI ZE P'cAcT 1 CE aF LAW L6t^^EN AGAwsT ZnTF1 A'T'f'oRAfEYs Lf1ldYER lA1LAPTlOAIEN As AL3ouE SEE NEraLE EXNIL3rT#'^"^4 "C° &IbuS CvMES,RELATafZ.ArPELLqM.PLAinitrFF LEUERT nc.6RIF'FiN.NE(mF3Y PRRY PbfZ RELIEF LLPOni'Ta WlliG.N RELIER CAnr BE GPtAn[TEd. A.rnaTrer.t FrafR Eti1TRY FoR ALLEGE dnrr4uTW0rtraE PreACTrcE aF LAru IoOisEO Afvr^,E6-ra ArTaRuEYs LAwyER. ^nsCA.PTranrE& AS AbevsE_ .SEC r(s,ucE cxAI PEr.li,rmL. L>APPE.FlL As QF R1a13T z^TRFanI Smi?R'Fa L eF RS.Car'.h LEVESZ~1 SOaw Cl-,..uSE- dRDE2 FOp^ REL)Ar11b, MmANf]E& TA)C f'fLEE AT ALL COS*P `TAlS RZEqmCLE5r wER Ciau F3AR rL, U rs 6lFl, PEnrtvAjG AISTddtC A7rVE REL/EF C,u P. RL. 55(a1^6) t*'s4,uERN WJLUE' 7)IE Au7'F1.. SctP CT RL. P"h.'00 , iti{E rgAl2cFoAln RL,$L.LIh^A^t^^JGR^ZEb PrZALT^CECK LAC^/.
    [Show full text]
  • Old Bacon Face
    The Judge’s Lawyer In successfully defending the ate tries him or her, with a two-thirds vote irascible Supreme Court Justice needed to convict—has run its full course only 18 times. Three of the 18 have been Samuel Chase—aka “Old Bacon especially momentous cases: those of two Face”—against impeachment, presidents, Andrew Johnson (1868) and Joseph Hopkinson C1786 G1789 William Jefferson Clinton (1998-99), and that of a Supreme Court justice, Samuel helped set a high bar for removal Chase (1805). from office and establish the Graduates of the University of Pennsyl- principle of judicial independence. vania have figured in two of those three blockbusters. The Clinton impeachment By Dennis Drabelle featured Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter C’51 breaking ranks with most of his Republican colleagues to vote against of this writing (February 9, 2018), conviction. Important as the fate of a Samuel Chase the Impeach-O-Meter—Slate particular president may be, however, magazine’s self-styled “wildly Perhaps the most remarkable thing even more was at stake in the Chase case: As subjective and speculative daily about impeachment is how seldom it the separation of powers. The phalanx of estimate” of the likelihood that Presi- happens. Common sense and the law of attorneys representing the embattled dent Donald Trump W’68 won’t get to averages suggest that hundreds of federal jurist included Joseph Hopkinson C1786 serve out his term—stands at 45 per- officials have abused their power or G1789, to whom was entrusted a crucial cent. That’s actually a pretty good num- betrayed the public’s trust over the years.
    [Show full text]
  • Justice William Cushing and the Treaty-Making Power
    Vanderbilt Law Review Volume 10 Issue 2 Issue 2 - February 1957 Article 9 2-1957 Justice William Cushing and the Treaty-Making Power F. William O'Brien S.J. Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.vanderbilt.edu/vlr Part of the Constitutional Law Commons, and the Supreme Court of the United States Commons Recommended Citation F. William O'Brien S.J., Justice William Cushing and the Treaty-Making Power, 10 Vanderbilt Law Review 351 (1957) Available at: https://scholarship.law.vanderbilt.edu/vlr/vol10/iss2/9 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarship@Vanderbilt Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Vanderbilt Law Review by an authorized editor of Scholarship@Vanderbilt Law. For more information, please contact [email protected]. JUSTICE WILLIAM CUSHING AND THE TREATY-MAKING POWER F. WILLIAM O'BRIEN, S.J.* Washington's First Appointees Although the work of the Supreme Court during the first few years was not great if measured in the number of cases handled, it would be a mistake to conclude that the six men who sat on the Bench during this formative period made no significant contribution to the develop- ment of American constitutional law. The Justices had few if any precedents to use as guides, and therefore their judicial work, limited though it was in volume, must be considered as stamped with the significance which attaches to all pioneer activity. Moreover, most of this work was done while on circuit duty in the different districts, and therefore from Vermont to Georgia the Supreme Court Justices were emissaries of good will for the new Constitution and the recently established general government.
    [Show full text]
  • Two Advisory Opinions by Chiefjustice Oliver Ellsworth
    Two Advisory Opinions by ChiefJustice Oliver Ellsworth William R. Casto ODA.Y ADVISORY OPINIONS are between the President and the House of anathema to the federal judiciary, but Representatives. Representative Edward T the early justices ofthe Supreme Court Livingston of New York had introduced a were not so loath to provide extrajudicialadvice resolution that would have reqnired President ro the Executive Branch. Although thejustices Washington to submit to the House the fanlOusly refused to render an advisory opinion documents and correspondence relevant to onone occasion duri~gthe Neutrality Crisis of the negotiation of the Jay Treaty, purportedly '793, their refusal was an exception (albeit an to assist the House in deciding whether to exception that was to become the rule) to their appropriate funds related to the treary. As ordinary practice. John Jay, the first Chief ProfeSSor David Currie has noted, "debate on Justice ofthe United States, gave the Executive this resolution lasted an enrire month and was Branch advisory opinions on a wide variety of one of the most impressive and fundamental • subjects before the 1793 refusal. After the ever conducted in Congress:'z Five days after Neutrality Crisis, the Court's third Chief he became Chief Justice, Ellsworth wrote an Justice, Oliver Ellsworth, continued the opinion letter to Connecticut Senator • practice..I .Jonathan-Trumbull, _cQru;!lJdinUj;t .. the. I , In 1796, Ellsworth wrote an advisory House had. no constitutional role in treaty • opinion on a looming constitutional dispute making and was thus bound to appropriate William R. Casto is the Alvin R. Allison Professor ofLaw at the Texas nch University School ofLaw.
    [Show full text]
  • Conflicts of Interest in Bush V. Gore: Did Some Justices Vote Illegally? Richard K
    Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University Scholarly Commons at Hofstra Law Hofstra Law Faculty Scholarship Spring 2003 Conflicts of Interest in Bush v. Gore: Did Some Justices Vote Illegally? Richard K. Neumann Jr. Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/faculty_scholarship Recommended Citation Richard K. Neumann Jr., Conflicts of Interest in Bush v. Gore: Did Some Justices Vote Illegally?, 16 Geo. J. Legal Ethics 375 (2003) Available at: https://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/faculty_scholarship/153 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarly Commons at Hofstra Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Hofstra Law Faculty Scholarship by an authorized administrator of Scholarly Commons at Hofstra Law. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ARTICLES Conflicts of Interest in Bush v. Gore: Did Some Justices Vote Illegally? RICHARD K. NEUMANN, JR.* On December 9, 2000, the United States Supreme Court stayed the presidential election litigation in the Florida courts and set oral argument for December 11.1 On the morning of December 12-one day after oral argument and half a day before the Supreme Court announced its decision in Bush v. Gore2-the Wall Street Journalpublished a front-page story that included the following: Chief Justice William Rehnquist, 76 years old, and Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, 70, both lifelong Republicans, have at times privately talked about retiring and would prefer that a Republican appoint their successors.... Justice O'Connor, a cancer survivor, has privately let it be known that, after 20 years on the high court,'she wants to retire to her home state of Arizona ...
    [Show full text]
  • Not the King's Bench Edward A
    University of Minnesota Law School Scholarship Repository Constitutional Commentary 2003 Not the King's Bench Edward A. Hartnett Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.umn.edu/concomm Part of the Law Commons Recommended Citation Hartnett, Edward A., "Not the King's Bench" (2003). Constitutional Commentary. 303. https://scholarship.law.umn.edu/concomm/303 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the University of Minnesota Law School. It has been accepted for inclusion in Constitutional Commentary collection by an authorized administrator of the Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. NOT THE KING'S BENCH Edward A. Hartnett* Speaking at a public birthday party for an icon, even if the honoree is one or two hundred years old, can be a surprisingly tricky business. Short of turning the party into a roast, it seems rude to criticize the birthday boy too harshly. On the other hand, it is at least as important to avoid unwarranted and exaggerated praise.1 The difficult task, then, is to try to say something re­ motely new or interesting while navigating that strait. The conference organizers did make it easier for me in one respect: My assignment does not involve those ideas for which Marbury is invoked as an icon. It is for others to wrestle in well­ worn trenches with exalted arguments about judicial review and its overgrown descendent judicial supremacy, while trying to avoid unseemly criticism or fawning praise. I, on the other hand, am to address more technical issues involving section 13 of the Judiciary Act of 1789 and its provision granting the Supreme Court the power to issue writs of mandamus.
    [Show full text]
  • The Question of Representation at the 1787 Convention
    The Question of Representation at the 1787 Convention Student Name ___________________________________________________ Date ________________ Activity Two: Bicameralism, Modes of Election and the “Rule of Suffrage” in Congress Reading Set A. One House or Two? 1. Constitutional Convention, 16 June 1787 http://www.teachingamericanhistory.com/convention/debates/0616.html Mr. PATTERSON, said as he had on a former occasion given his sentiments on the plan proposed by Mr. R. he would now avoiding repetition as much as possible give his reasons in favor of that proposed by himself…It is urged that two branches in the Legislature are necessary. Why? for the purpose of a check. But the reason of7 the precaution is not applicable to this case. Within a particular State, where party heats prevail, such a check may be necessary. In such a body as Congress it is less necessary, and besides, the delegations of the different States are checks on each other. Do the people at large complain of Congs.? No, what they wish is that Congs. may have more power. If the power now proposed be not eno', the people hereafter will make additions to it… Mr. WILSON entered into a contrast of the principal points of the two plans so far he said as there had been time to examine the one last proposed. These points were 1. in the Virga. plan there are 2 & in some degree 3 branches in the Legislature: in the plan from N. J. there is to be a single legislature only… [P]roceeding now to the 1st point on which he had contrasted the two plans, he observed that anxious as he was for some augmentation of the federal powers, it would be with extreme reluctance indeed that he could ever consent to give powers to Congs.
    [Show full text]
  • Does Eliminating Life Tenure for Article Iii Judges Require a Constitutional Amendment?
    DOW & MEHTA_03_15_21 (DO NOT DELETE) 3/17/2021 6:41 PM DOES ELIMINATING LIFE TENURE FOR ARTICLE III JUDGES REQUIRE A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT? DAVID R. DOW & SANAT MEHTA* ABSTRACT Beginning in the early 2000s, a number of legal academicians from across the political spectrum proposed eliminating life tenure for some or all Article III judges and replacing it with a term of years (or a set of renewable terms). These scholars were largely in agreement such a change could be accomplished only by a formal constitutional amendment of Article III. In this Article, Dow and Mehta agree with the desirability of doing away with life tenure but argue such a change can be accomplished by ordinary legislation, without the need for formal amendment. Drawing on both originalism and formalism, Dow and Mehta begin by observing that the constitutional text does not expressly provide for lifetime tenure; rather, it states that judges shall hold their office during good behavior. The good behavior criterion, however, was not intended to create judicial sinecures for 20 or 30 years, but instead aimed at safeguarding judicial independence from the political branches. By measuring both the length of judicial tenure among Supreme Court justices, as well as voting behavior on the Supreme Court, Dow and Mehta conclude that, in fact, life tenure has proven inconsistent with judicial independence. They maintain that the Framers’ objective of insuring judicial independence is best achieved by term limits for Supreme Court justices. Copyright © 2021 David R. Dow & Sanat Mehta. * David Dow is the Cullen Professor at the University of Houston Law Center; Sanat Mehta, who graduated magna cum laude from Rice University in 2020 with a degree in computer science and a minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought, is a data analyst at American Airlines.
    [Show full text]