American Judiciary, Part 7: Marbury v. Madison
On March 2, 1801, two days before leaving office, President John Adams submitted to Congress a list of fifty-eight names, all Federalists, to fill positions created by the recently passed Judiciary Act. But Secretary of State John Marshall was unable to fill all the commissions before Thomas Jefferson was sworn in as president on March 4. Jefferson directed his secretary of state, James Madison, to not deliver the remaining commissions, one of which was for a justice of the peace position for William Marbury. Marbury then sued requesting the Supreme Court issue a writ of mandamus which is a court order that compels a government official to perform a legally appointed task. On February 24, 1803, John Marshall, who was now the chief justice of the Supreme Court, issued his landmark ruling.
Tom Hand, creator and publisher of Americana Corner, discusses how the Marbury v. Madison decision established the concept of judicial review, and why it still matters today.
Images courtesy of the National Gallery of Art, Library of Congress, National Portrait Gallery - Smithsonian Institution, National Archives, New York Public Library, Wikimedia.
The first few decades of the 19th century were an exciting time for the American judiciary, at least as exciting as anything involving attorneys and judges can be. From the time Thomas Jefferson was sworn in as President on March 4, 1801, through the presidency of Andrew Jackson, there was a tremendous antagonism between the populist Executive branch and the Supreme Court, the last bastion of Federalism. This unprecedented tension between the Executive and the Judiciary made for frequent and intense conflicts, arguably more frequent and more intense than during any other period in our country’s history.