Foundational Cases: 

1. Marbury v. Madison (1803): Established judicial review; strengthened the power of the Supreme Court. 

2. McCulloch v. Maryland (1819): Confirmed national supremacy and the implied powers of Congress; states cannot tax federal entities. 

3. Gibbons v. Ogden (1824): Broadened the interpretation of the Commerce Clause; allowed Congress to regulate interstate commerce. 

Civil Rights and Liberties: 

4. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896): Established "separate but equal," legitimizing racial segregation. 

5. Brown v. Board of Education (1954): Overturned Plessy, declaring school segregation unconstitutional; started desegregation. 

6. Brown v. Board, 2nd (1955): Mandated desegregation in schools with "all deliberate speed." 

7. Miranda v. Arizona (1966): Established Miranda rights; suspects must be informed of their rights before interrogation. 

8. Roe v. Wade (1973): Legalized abortion nationwide under the right to privacy. 

9. Griswold v. Connecticut (1965): Established the right to privacy, setting a precedent for Roe v. Wade. 

10. Korematsu v. U.S. (1944): Upheld internment of Japanese Americans during WWII. 

Free Speech and Expression: 

11. Schenck v. U.S. (1919): Established the "clear and present danger" test, limiting free speech during wartime. 

12. Gitlow v. New York (1925): Began the process of applying the Bill of Rights to the states (incorporation). 

13. Near v. Minnesota (1931): Protected newspapers from prior restraint. 

14. Roth v. United States (1957): Defined obscenity, which is not protected under the First Amendment. 

15. Texas v. Johnson (1989): Protected flag burning as symbolic speech under the First Amendment. 

16. NY Times v. Sullivan (1964): Protected press freedom by requiring proof of "actual malice" in libel cases involving public figures. 

Due Process and Criminal Rights: 

17. Weeks v. U.S. (1914): Established the Exclusionary Rule, barring illegally obtained evidence in federal courts. 

18. Mapp v. Ohio (1961): Extended the Exclusionary Rule to state courts. 

19. Gideon v. Wainwright (1963): Guaranteed the right to counsel for indigent defendants in criminal cases. 

20. Escobedo v. Illinois (1964): Established the right to counsel during police interrogations. 

21. Miranda v. Arizona (1966): Mandated informing suspects of their rights. 

Government Powers and Federalism: 

22. U.S. v. Nixon (1974): Limited executive privilege, reinforcing that the President is not above the law. 

23. Clinton v. NY (1998): Struck down the line-item veto as unconstitutional. 

24. Bush v. Gore (2000): Resolved the 2000 presidential election using the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection Clause. 

25. U.S. v. Lopez (1995): Limited Congress's power under the Commerce Clause for the first time in decades. 

Equality and Affirmative Action: 

26. Bakke v. Regents of the University of California (1978): Outlawed strict racial quotas but allowed race to be one factor in college admissions. 

27. Gratz v. Bollinger (2003) and Grutter v. Bollinger (2003): Clarified affirmative action, banning point-based systems but allowing race to be considered holistically in admissions. 

Miscellaneous Key Cases: 

28. Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971): Established the "Lemon Test" for determining violations of the Establishment Clause. 

29. Miller v. California (1973): Redefined obscenity and set new standards for what constitutes it. 

30. Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992): Upheld Roe v. Wade but allowed more state regulations on abortion.