Category: Supreme Court Decisions

In United States v. Carolene Products Company, 304 U.S. 144 (1938), the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the validity of an economic regulation passed by Congress pursuant to the Commerce Clause. However, the case is more famous for “Footnote Four,” ...

In Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of counsel applies to the states via the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court’s unanimous decision expressly over...

On June 1, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court, in EEOC v. Abercrombie, held that an employer could be held liable for not being able to accommodate a religious practice under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, even though the employee or job appli...

Nearly 50 years later, the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Miranda vs Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966), remains one of the Court’s most influential Fifth Amendment rulings. By a vote of 5-4, the majority held that in Miranda vs Arizona ...

In Johnson v. M’Intosh, 21 U.S. 543 (1823), the U.S. Supreme Court addressed whether Native Americans had the power to give, and of private individuals to receive, title to land. The justices ultimately answered, in the case of Johnson v. M'Into...

On June 22, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a City of Los Angeles ordinance that required hotel operators to allow law enforcement to inspect guest registries without obtaining a warrant. The 5-4 majority in City of Los Angeles v. Patel, 57...

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...