Category: Historical

In Arver v. United States, 245 U.S. 366 (1918), the U.S. Supreme Court held that Congress was authorized under the Constitution to compel military service pursuant to the Selective Service Act of 1917. The consolidated cases are also known as the...

In Standard Oil Company of New Jersey v. United States, 221 U.S. 1 (1911), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Standard Oil Company was guilty of operating a monopoly in violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. While the Court upheld the app...

In Yick Wo v. Hopkins, 118 U.S. 356 (1886), the U.S. Supreme Court first held that discriminatory enforcement of a facially neutral law violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.   The Facts of the Yick Wo v. Hop...

In In re Eugene V. Debs, 158 U.S. 564 (1895), the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the government’s use of a court injunction to order striking workers back on the job. In a unanimous decision, the Court held that the federal government had the right ...

In Cohens v. Virginia, 19 U.S. 264 (1821), the U.S. Supreme Court established itself as the highest court in the county. The justices expressly held that the Court had appellate jurisdiction over state court criminal law decisions involving alleg...

In Livingston v. Van Ingen, 9 Johns. R. 507 N.Y. 1812, the New York Court for the Correction of Errors upheld a New York statute authorizing a monopoly on steam boat transportation in New York waters. The appeals court decision, which was later n...

In Lochner v. New York, 198 U.S. 45 (1905), the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a New York law that established maximum working hours for bakers. According to the majority, the right to buy and sell labor was a liberty interest protected under the...

In Northern Securities Co. v. United States, 193 U.S. 197 (1904), the U.S. Supreme Court held that a holding company formed to create a railroad monopoly violated the Sherman Antitrust Law. The government’s victory in the case helped solidify P...

In Pollock v. Farmers Loan & Trust Co., 157 U.S. 429 (1895), the U.S. Supreme Court held that federal taxes on interest, dividends and rents violated Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution. In 1913, the adoption of the Sixteenth Amendment nullifi...

In United States v. E.C. Knight, 156 U.S. 1 (1895), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Sherman Anti-Trust Act was a valid exercise of Congress’ power under the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. However, it also held that the statute could...