AP Gov SCOTUS Summaries

Summaries and important details of Supreme Court Cases

Unites States v. Lopez (1995)

A landmark Supreme Court case in which the Court ruled that the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990 exceeded Congress's authority under the Commerce Clause, establishing limits on federal power over local affairs.

A student brought an unloaded gun to school. This was in violation of the recently passed GFSZA. The Court held that possession of a firearm in a school zone does not substantially affect interstate commerce, thereby holding that the GFSZA was unconstitutional under the Commerce Clause.

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

A significant Supreme Court case that established the principle of federal supremacy over state laws. The Court ruled that the state of Maryland could not tax the Second Bank of the United States, affirming Congress's implied powers under the Necessary and Proper Clause.

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Wickard v. Filburn (1942)

Hernandez v. Texas (1954)

Marbury v. Madison (1803)