Month: May 2016

On December 23, 1913, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Federal Reserve Act into law. The landmark legislation created the Federal Reserve, which was intended to reform the country’s banking system and help secure economic stability.    ...

The 4-4 Supreme Court Punts in Zubik v Burwell The U.S. Supreme Court declined to address the merits of Zubik v. Burwell, at least for this term. Instead, the Court’s per curium opinion on the Affordable Care Act’s contraception mandate directs ...

The Federal Antitrust Acts In 1890, Congress enacted the country’s first antitrust law, the Sherman Antitrust Act. In 1914, Congress passed the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Clayton Act to further police anticompetitive business conduct. To...

Downes v. Bidwell: Does the Constitution Follow the Flag? In Downes v. Bidwell, 182 U.S. 244 (1901), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the rights and protections of the Constitution do not automatically apply to U.S. territories. The case is one of t...

Welch v. United States: Landmark Sentencing Decision Must Be Applied Retroactively On April 18, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court held that its landmark criminal sentencing decision in Johnson v. United States must be applied retroactively. The justices ...

The Sixteenth Amendment: The Federal Income Tax The Sixteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution eliminated the requirement that federal taxes be levied on individuals in proportion with the populations of their states. The amendment cleared the way...

Bank of the United States v Deveaux: The Citizenship of Corporations In Bank of the United States v. Deveaux, 5 Cranch 61 (1809), the U.S. Supreme Court first considered the citizenship of corporations for the purposes of diversity jurisdiction. The...

Franchise Tax Board of California v Hyatt: Applying the Full Faith and Credit Clause On April 19, 2016, the Supreme Court reached another 4-4 tie. In Franchise Tax Board of California v Hyatt, the justices could not decide whether to overrule Nevada...

Ware v Hylton: Supreme Court Power to Invalidate State Laws In Ware v. Hylton, 3 U.S. (3 Dall.) 199 (1796), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the federal courts are authorized to determine the constitutionality of state laws. The Court subsequently h...

Heffernan v City of Patterson In Heffernan v.City of Patterson, the U.S. Supreme Court held that when an employer demotes an employee out of a desire to prevent the worker from engaging in protected political activity, the employee is entitled to ch...