AP Gov Must Know Supreme Court Cases

McCulloch v Maryland Constitutional Principle

Necessary and Proper (Elastic) Clause, Supremacy Clause

McCulloch V Maryland Case Facts

1816 — The case involved the state of Maryland attempting to tax the Second Bank of the United States, which the Bank refused to pay. Maryland argued that the Bank was unconstitutional, since it wasn’t explicitly written in the Constitution. This raised questions over federalism, the balance of power between states and local governments.

McCulloch v Maryland Decision and Importance

Unanimous [6-0] in favor of McCulloch. Chief Justice John Marshall argued that the bank was constitutional under the Necessary and Proper Clause, giving the federal government the implied powers for a national bank. Furthermore, whenever state laws are in conflict with federal laws, federal laws win due to the Supremacy Clause.

SIGNIFICANCE: Helped define the balance of power between state govts and federal government.

United States V Lopez Constitutional Principle

Commerce Clause (Article1.8),

United States V Lopez Case Facts

1992 — The case revolved around a high school student, Alfonso Lopez, who was charged with bringing a gun to school in Texas, leading to federal charges under the Gun-Free School Zones Act. Lopez argued that the law exceeded Congress's powers under the Commerce Clause, as possessing a gun in a school zone did not affect interstate commerce. The Constitution never gave Congress the power to regulate gun laws, which is a state issue.

United States v Lopez Decision and Significance

The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of Lopez, stating that the Gun-Free School Zones Act exceeded Congress's authority under the Commerce Clause. This decision marked a significant limit on federal power, reaffirming states' rights to regulate local matters such as gun possession in schools.

SIGNIFICANCE: This case significantly limited Congress’ use of the Commerce Clause and tipped the balance of federalism towards state power over federal power.