Column 1
In this 1803 case, the Supreme Court ruled that it had the authority to nullify acts of Congress or the executive branch deemed unconstitutional. This landmark case involved judicial appointments made by outgoing President John Adams and was the first to establish the principle of judicial review.
What is Marbury v. Madison
This 1962 ruling addressed whether voluntary school prayer violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. The Supreme Court held that public schools could not sponsor prayer, reinforcing the separation of church and state.
What is Engel v. Vitale
This 1993 case involved North Carolina's creation of a congressional district designed to elect a Black representative. The Supreme Court ruled that such race-based redistricting could violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment if race was the predominant factor in drawing the district's boundaries.
What is Shaw v. Reno
In this 1963 case, the Supreme Court ruled that the Sixth Amendment’s right to counsel applies to state courts through the Fourteenth Amendment, ensuring that defendants in state criminal cases must be provided with legal representation if they cannot afford one.
What is Gideon v. Wainwright?
This 1972 ruling held that forcing Amish children to attend school past the eighth grade violated their rights under the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment, recognizing the balance between religious freedom and state interests in education.
What is Wisconsin v. Yoder?
This 1819 case arose when the state of Maryland attempted to tax a federal bank, but the Supreme Court ruled that states can't interfere with federal institutions, affirming the doctrine of federal supremacy and recognizing implied powers under the Necessary and Proper Clause.
What is McCulloch v. Maryland
In this 1963 case, a Florida man accused of a felony was denied the right to legal counsel because he couldn’t afford one. The Supreme Court ruled that under the Sixth Amendment, states must provide attorneys to defendants who cannot afford them, fundamentally reshaping criminal justice.
What is Gideon v. Wainwright
In this 1995 case, the Supreme Court ruled that Congress overstepped its authority under the Commerce Clause by passing a law that made it a federal crime to possess a gun in a school zone. This case marked the first time in over 50 years that the Court limited Congress’s commerce power.
What is United States v. Lopez
This 1954 decision overturned decades of legally sanctioned racial segregation in public schools, ruling that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal" and that segregation violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
What is Brown v. Board of Education?
In this 1993 case, the Supreme Court ruled that congressional districts based solely on race could be challenged under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, marking a key decision on racial gerrymandering.
What is Shaw v. Reno?
In this 1919 case, the Supreme Court decided that distributing anti-draft pamphlets during World War I presented a "clear and present danger" to national security, ruling that such speech was not protected under the First Amendment, and thus could be limited by the government.
What is Schenck v. United States
This 1969 case dealt with the rights of students wearing black armbands to protest the Vietnam War. The Supreme Court ruled that students retain their First Amendment free speech rights in schools, so long as their actions do not cause substantial disruption.
What is Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District
This 2010 case incorporated the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for self-defense to the states, ruling that the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause makes the Second Amendment applicable to state and local governments.
What is McDonald v. Chicago?
In this 1819 case, the Supreme Court reaffirmed the federal government’s authority by ruling that the state of Maryland could not tax a federal bank, establishing the principle that federal law is supreme over state law and endorsing the use of implied powers.
What is McCulloch v. Maryland?
This 1969 case affirmed students' First Amendment rights in public schools, ruling that students' symbolic protest of the Vietnam War, by wearing black armbands, was protected speech as long as it did not cause a significant disruption to the school environment.
What is Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District?
This 1954 Supreme Court case overturned Plessy v. Ferguson's “separate but equal” doctrine, ruling that racial segregation in public schools violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, and laid the foundation for the civil rights movement.
What is Brown v. Board of Education
This 1971 case involved the U.S. government's attempt to block the New York Times and the Washington Post from publishing the Pentagon Papers, a classified history of the Vietnam War. The Supreme Court ruled that the government could not impose prior restraint on the press, strengthening First Amendment protections.
What is New York Times Co. v. United States
In this 2010 case, the Supreme Court ruled that political spending by corporations, labor unions, and associations is a form of protected speech under the First Amendment, allowing unlimited independent political expenditures and reshaping campaign finance laws.
What is Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission?
In this 1803 case, the Supreme Court ruled that the Judiciary Act of 1789 conflicted with the Constitution, establishing the Court's ability to declare acts of Congress unconstitutional and solidifying judicial review as a key function of the Supreme Court.
What is Marbury v. Madison?
In this 1919 case, involving a man distributing anti-war pamphlets during World War I, the Supreme Court ruled that the government can restrict speech that poses a "clear and present danger," defining the limits of free speech under the First Amendment.
What is Schenck v. United States?
In this 1962 case, the Supreme Court addressed redistricting in Tennessee and ruled that federal courts have jurisdiction over reapportionment cases, allowing challenges under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, and initiating the principle of "one person, one vote."
What is Baker v. Carr
In this 1972 case, the Supreme Court ruled that forcing Amish children to attend school past eighth grade violated the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment. The Court held that the state's interest in compulsory education did not outweigh the religious beliefs of the Amish community.
What is Wisconsin v. Yoder
This 1962 case opened the door for federal courts to intervene in issues of legislative apportionment, declaring that claims of malapportionment based on unequal voting districts could be adjudicated under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
What is Baker v. Carr?
In this 1971 case, the Supreme Court rejected the government's attempt to stop the New York Times from publishing a classified report on the Vietnam War, ruling that prior restraint on the press was unconstitutional, even in cases involving national security.
What is New York Times Co. v. United States?
In this 1962 ruling, the Supreme Court declared that public school officials could not lead students in prayer, even if the prayer was non-denominational and voluntary, as it violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
What is Engel v. Vitale?