Marbury v. Madison Supreme Court Case
February 24, 1803 · 19th Century
The U.S. Supreme Court established judicial review, allowing federal courts to determine whether legislative and executive actions violate the Constitution. Chief Justice John Marshall ruled unanimously that William Marbury was entitled to his justice of the peace commission, but the Court lacked jurisdiction to compel Secretary of State James Madison to deliver it. The Court declared Section 13 of the Judiciary Act of 1789 unconstitutional for attempting to expand the Court's original jurisdiction beyond Article III limits. This decision positioned the Supreme Court as the final interpreter of constitutional matters.
Key Figures
John MarshallJames MadisonWilliam MarburyThomas JeffersonJohn Adams
Locations
Washington, D.C.
Topics
supreme courtconstitutionjudicial reviewseparation of powers
Connected Events — 3 Connections
Chief Justice Marshall Marbury precedent of judicial authority over constitutional interpretation established the framework he applied in Johnson v. M'Intosh to create the discovery doctrine Johnson v. M'Intosh
The Constitution Article III created the Supreme Court whose powers Marbury v. Madison defined through judicial review of the Judiciary Act of 1789 U.S. Constitution Ratified
The majority opinion explicitly invoked Marbury v. Madison's principle that 'it is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is,' restoring the full force of judicial primacy over statutory interpretation by removing Chevron deference, which had required courts to defer to executive agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes for forty years. Supreme Court Strips Agencies' Power to Interpret Laws
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