Federalism and the Supreme Court
Case
Fletcher v. Peck (1810)
Brief Description
The state of Georgia awarded land to four companies then
voided it a year later. Later that land was sold to Fletcher
who found out it wasn’t Peck’s to sell in the first place so
Peck committed a breach of contract.
Impact on state-national government relationship
The central government has more power than the states.
States cannot revoke a corrupt land deal due to the
constitutional prohibition against ex post facto laws and bills
of attainders.
McCulloch v. Maryland
(1819)
Maryland enacted laws imposing a tax on the newly created
national bank operating in Maryland.
Supreme court allowed the creation of the bank based on the
necessary and proper clause. State laws cannot contradict
federal laws based on the Supremacy clause (Art VI).
Cohens v. Virginia (1821)
In this case, two brothers were selling D.C. lottery tickets and
were arrested and tried for violating Virginia law.
The Supreme court reaffirmed the power of the federal
government over the states by stating that the Supreme
Court has jurisdiction over all cases involving federal law or
the U.S. Constitution. After establishing this fact, the Virginia
conviction against the brothers was upheld.
Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)
Two men had a license to travel on the Hudson River to trade
between NY and NJ but New York wouldn’t allow it. Ogden
had a license from NY and Gibbons had a state license from
the U.S Congress
The state government tried to regulate interstate commerce
but the Supreme Court reaffirmed that only federal
government had that power.
Texas v. White (1869)
In 1862 Texas took the bonds given to the state by the
federal government and distributed it for war supplies. The
state government filed suit to recover the bonds from the
citizen who held them to begin reconstruction after the civil
war.
Texas was allowed to sue because they never left the union.
The money was returned to Texas. Secession was ruled
unconstitutional and the Constitution created “an
indestructible Union, composed of indestructible states”
West Coast Hotel Co. v.
Parrish (1937)
In this case a woman working at the West Coast Hotel was
not being fairly paid for her workload. The state of
Washington supported her position, but the employer
appealed to the Supreme Court arguing that a state minimum
wage law violated their “liberty of contract” between
employer and employee.
The Supreme Court supported the minimum wage law and
by this action asserted that the federal government has the
power to regulate economic activity within states.
US v. Lopez (1995)
A senior in high school brings gun to school and got caught.
They wanted to charge him for possession of firearm on
school grounds, which violated state law. However, the
federal government changed it to where they are charged
him with a federal crime.
The student was charged under the federal Gun-Free School
Zones (GFSZ) Act in 1990, but he was supposed to be
charged with firearm possession by the state of Texas. The
GFSZ Act was passed under the commerce clause, but the
Supreme Court ruled that the action of carrying a gun onto
school property was not an “economic activity.” Therefore,
the federal law was deemed unconstitutional and returned
this power to the states.