The 15 Court Cases

McCulloch v Maryland (1819)

Established supremacy of the U.S. Constitution and federal

laws over state laws Supremacy Clause and Necessary & Proper Clause; Maryland tried to tax the National Bank; National Bank won;

Necessary & Proper Clause

McCulloch v Maryland; State of Maryland (or any other) - couldn’t

interfere with U.S. Government using implied powers from

“necessary & proper clause”…

Supremacy Clause

McCulloch v Maryland; Marshall “supremacy clause” unequivocally states “Constitution and the laws of the United States shall be the supreme law of the land.”

U.S. v Lopez (1995)

Congress may not use the commerce clause to

make possession of a gun in a school zone a

federal crime; Fed govt. stretched the interstate

commerce clause too far

Engel v. Vitale (1962)

1st Amendment Freedom of Religion – Establishment Clause; School sponsorship of religious activities violates the establishment clause; New York school couldn’t hold a public prayer anymore

Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)

Freedom of Religion – Establishment Clause; The Supreme Court ruled that Amish children could not be placed under compulsory education past 8th grade, as it violated their religious beliefs; free exercise clause

Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)

1st Amendment Free Speech; Public school students have the right to wear black armbands in school to protest the Vietnam War; ruled with the students; symbolic speech/freedom of expression; standard of disruption

New York Times Co. v. United States (1971)

Bolstered the freedom of the press, establishing a “heavy presumption against prior restraint” even in cases involving national security; Nixon was hiding stuff regarding the Vietnam War and attempted to prevent the publication of the Pentagon Papers.

Prior restraint

New York Times v. United States; ability of Federal Government to stop publication if it risks national security

Schenck v. United States (1919)

Speech creating a “clear and present danger” is not protected by the First Amendment; Speech can’t create “clear & present danger; Schenck told people to burn their draft papers during WW1; ruled that during wartime government has more power

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

Guaranteed the right to an attorney (6th Amendment) for the poor or indigent in a state felony case “You have the right to an attorney… If you can’t afford one”; due process

Due Process

legal procedures / protections government must provide

Roe v. Wade (1973)

Extended the right of privacy to a woman’s decision to have an

abortion, This was overturned by Dobbs v. Jackson (2022) which left it up to the states; Right to privacy not explicitly in the

Constitution or Bill of Rights

McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

protected Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for self-defense is applicable to the states; also incorporated the Fourteenth Amendment’s due process

14th Amendment

The 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause as well as other constitutional provisions have often been used to support the advancement of equality.

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

landmark Supreme Court case that declared racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional, overturning Plessy v. Ferguson; 14th amendment equal protection clause; opened door to end legalized state segregation (Jim Crow Laws)

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)

Political spending by corporations, associations, and labor unions is a form of protected speech under the First Amendment Led to creation of Super-PACS (unlimited); overturned Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (McCain v Feingold)

Baker v. Carr (1961)

Redistricting issues in Tennessee; Opened the door to equal protection challenges to redistricting and the development of the “one person, one vote” doctrine by ruling that challenges to redistricting did not raise “political questions” that would keep federal courts from reviewing such challenges

Shaw v. Reno (1993)

no race based districting; Majority minority districts, created under the Voting Rights Act of 1965, may be constitutionally challenged by voters if race is the only factor used in creating the district; South Carolina district created to elect a black representative was ruled unconstitutional as it violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

Established Judicial Review; Established the principle of judicial review empowering the Supreme Court to nullify an act of the legislative or executive branch that violates the Constitution; the court didn’t really have the power to do that because it’s not in the Constitution but Hamilton wrote about it in Fed 78

Miranda Rights (Miranda v Arizona)

5th Amendment – right to remain silent 6th Amendment – right to an attorney (when being interrogated)