McCulloch v Maryland

In what year did Congress Charter the second bank of the United States?

1816

How did Baltimore, Maryland react to the Federal Bank wanting to branch out to MD?

They were angry and thought it to be a big mistake.

How did Maryland react to the National Bank in its borders?

The MD state legislature passed a law saying that any bank in MD which wasn’t chartered by MD would be subject to a tax of $15,000 a year.

Who was the cashier of the Baltimore branch of the national bank that refused to pay the tax?

James McCulloch

What was the Constitutional Principle at stake with this case?

What were the arguments of this case?

Maryland argued that the establishment of a national bank was unconstitutional ( because nowhere in Article I Section 8 did it say that Congress had the power to create a bank)

McCulloch’s lawyers argued that the bank was Constitutional under the necessary and proper clause ( Article I Section 8 )

implied powers

powers that aren’t named but they are implied

What was the decision of this case?

There was a unanimous [6-0] in favor of McCulloch, and Chief Justice John Marshall argued that the bank was constitutional on account of the authority of the necessary and proper clause.

If a power isn’t prohibited by the Constituion and the law in question upholds the spirit of the constitution..

Then it stands

This case established:

The supremacy of national laws over state laws

According to this case, if a state law is in conflict with a federal law…

federal law wins

Why does this decision matter?

It matters mostly because of what it demonstrated about federalism.

federalism

the balance of power between the federal government and the states