The Most Important Impacts Of John Marshall And The Supreme Court

The Constitution was the first stepping stone in the national sovereignty of the United States. It is the supreme law that has been valued and upheld since its ratification in 1787. It holds the rights and freedoms of all Americans and gives structure to the government. To uphold this structure, the judiciary branch was established, alongside the legislative and executive, by the Constitution. However, the judicial branch did not always have the power and influence it does today. Because of the 4th Chief Justice, John Marshall, the Supreme Court eventually gained the power and ability to become coequal to the legislative and executive branches. John Marshall’s establishment of Judicial Review in the Supreme Court and his strong federalists

In the early years of the Constitution the legislative and executive branches held the power to establish and enforce any laws. This was prevalent up until the Marbury v. Madison case in 1803. John Marshall, as the Chief Justice during the case, declared that the Judicial Act of 1801, appointing numerous federalist “midnight judges” to judicial positions in the government, was unconstitutional. By overruling a law passed by Congress itself, Marshall was able to prove the Supreme Court as a center of power that can even have precedence over Congress, the President, and all other courts if it is necessary to determine constitutionality. Also known as Judicial Review, this power was the base on which John Marshall build up the Supreme Court to be respected and equal to the other branches. The power of the Supreme Court and federal law was continued into the next major case, Fletcher v. Peck. When Georgia wanted the land they gave to the Yazoo Company back after elections, their government brought it to court. John Marshall and the Supreme Court declared that land grant contracts cannot be repealed and made contracts “sacred”. Marshall utilized the power of the Supreme Court to overrule the decision made by Georgia. The establishment of Judicial Review is prevalent in the outcome of Fletcher v. Peck in that the federal judiciary

In doing so, he heightens the influence of the Supreme Court and continues to increase federal power over the states. This concept was further seen in the Supreme Court case Dartmouth v. Woodward, in which the state of New Hampshire tried to force Dartmouth college to become a public institution because it was chartered by the British crown. The Supreme Court once more demonstrated the power of Judicial Review of state decisions and ruled charters as legal contracts. Marshall used the power of the judicial branch to enforce the Contract Clause of the Constitution preventing state legislature from impairing contract rights. Moreover, John Marshall insured the power of the federal court over state legislation in the case McCulloch v. Maryland. Southern states sought to limit the power of the Nation Bank, especially Maryland, who imposed a high tax on notes of the Bank of the United States. In this case, John Marshall declared that the Bank was constitutional under the Necessary and Proper Clause. The power of the Supreme Court over state legislature was further demonstrated in McCulloch v. Maryland by negating Maryland’s