Historical

Jones v Van Zandt, 46 U.S. 215 (1847) is one of the U.S. Supreme Court cases that considers slavery issues before the Civil War. The justices ultimately ruled against abolitionis...

In Swift v Tyson, 41 U.S. 1 (1842), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the federal courts were authorized to create their own body of common law when hearing cases based on diversi...

In Worcester v Georgia, 31 U.S. 515 (1832), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Cherokee Nation was sovereign. It also ruled that the federal government — and not the states �...

In Cherokee Nation v Georgia, 30 U.S. (5 Peters) 1 (1831), members of the Cherokee Nation sought to enjoin the state of Georgia from seizing their land. However, the U.S. Supreme...

In Craig v Missouri, 29 U.S. 410 (1830), the U.S. Supreme Court held that a Missouri statute authorizing loan certificates issued by the state violated Article I, section 10 of t...

In Weston v City Council of Charleston, 27 U.S. 449 (1829), the Supreme Court held that a city ordinance taxing interest-bearing stock of the United States was unconstitutional. ...

In Willson v Black Bird Creek Marsh Company, 27 U.S. (2 Pet.) 245 (1829), the U.S. Supreme Court held that a Delaware state law authorizing the building of a dam did not unconsti...

In Brown v Maryland, 12 Wheat. 419 (1827), the U.S. Supreme Court held that a Maryland law requiring importers of foreign goods to obtain a license violated the Constitution’s ...

In Ogden v Saunders, 25 U.S. 213 (1827), the U.S. Supreme Court held that a New York bankruptcy law did not violate the Constitution’s Contracts Clause. The case is also mos...

In Wayman v Southard, 23 U.S. 10 Wheat. 1 1 (1825), the U.S. Supreme Court first grappled with the doctrine of non-delegation, under which one branch of government can’t delega...