Category: Supreme Court Decisions

In Dartmouth College v. Woodward, 17 U.S. 518 (1819), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the U.S. Constitution’s Contracts Clause prohibited state legislatures from interfering with individual property rights. Accordingly, the Court invalidated a ...

In Martin v. Hunter’s Lessee, 14 U.S. 304 (1816), the U.S. Supreme Court first asserted its authority to overrule a state court decision regarding an issue of federal law. The Court’s landmark decision was rooted in the Court’s appellate jur...

On June 18, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court held that an Arizona town’s sign ordinance violates the First Amendment. The Court’s unanimous decision in Reed v. Town of Gilbert established that regulations that are facially content-based must be subje...

In New York v. Connecticut, 4 U.S. 1 (1799), the U.S. Supreme Court first exercised its original jurisdiction to decide a legal dispute between two states. The dispute involved a strip of land over which the states of New York and Connecticut both c...

In Calder v. Bull, 3 U.S. 386 (1798), the U.S. Supreme Court first interpreted the ex post facto clause of the United States Constitution. The justices held that the clause only applies to certain criminal acts. The Facts of Calder v. Bull Calder ...

On June 29, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Arizona’s use of an independent commission to adopt congressional districts. In her majority opinion in Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission, 576 U. S. ____ (2015)...

In Hollingsworth v. Virginia, 3 U.S. 378 (1798), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Eleventh Amendment was valid, even though the President of the United States had not formally sanctioned it. While the rationale of the Court has been debated, ...

In Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs v. The Inclusive Communities Project, 576 U. S. ____ (2015), the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that disparate-impact claims are cognizable under the Fair Housing Act (FHA). The 5-4 decision end...

In Talbot v. Janson, 3 U.S. 133 (1795), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the jurisdiction of the court extended to the seas. The Court also held that Americans who gain citizenship of another country do not waive their U.S. citizenship status. ...

On June 29, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled, by a vote of 5-4, that Oklahoma’s lethal injection protocol does not violate the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. The case, Glossip v. Gross, was one of the most signi...