Background
Summary and Questions • •
Thomas
Jefferson, a member of the Republican Party, won the election
of 1800. Before Jefferson took office, John Adams, the outgoing
President who was a Federalist, quickly appointed 58 members
of his own party to fill government jobs created by Congress.
He did this because he wanted people from his political party
in office.
It
was the responsibility of Adams' Secretary of State, John
Marshall, to finish the paperwork and give it to each of
the newly appointed officials. Although Marshall signed
and sealed all of the papers, he failed to deliver 17 of
them to the appointees. Marshall thought his successor would
finish the job. But when Jefferson became President, he
told his new Secretary of State, James Madison, not to deliver
some of the papers. Those individuals couldn't take office
until they actually had their papers in hand.
Adams
had appointed William Marbury to be justice of the peace
of the District of Columbia. Marbury was one of the last-minute
appointees who did not receive his papers. He sued Adams'
Secretary of State, James Madison, and asked the Supreme
Court of the United States to issue a court order requiring
that Madison deliver his papers.
Marbury
argued that he was entitled to the job and that the Judiciary
Act of 1789 gave the Supreme Court of the United States
original jurisdiction to issue a writ of mandamus,
which is the type of court order he needed. When the case
came before the Court, John Marshall — the person who had
failed to deliver the commission in the first place — was
the new Chief Justice. The Court had to decide whether Marbury
was entitled to his job, and if so, whether the Judiciary
Act of 1789 gave the Court the authority it needed to force
the Secretary of State to appoint Marbury to his position.
Questions to Consider:
- Keeping
in mind his role in the original appointments, who was
Chief Justice Marshall likely to side with, Marbury or
Madison? Why?
- If
the Court decided that Marbury was entitled to his job,
how could it be sure that the executive branch would deliver
it? Does the Court have the power to force compliance?
What would happen if the Court issued the writ, but the
executive branch refused to comply?
- According
to Article 3, Section 2 of the Constitution, in what types
of cases does the Supreme Court of the United States have
original jurisdiction? Does the Congress have the authority
to change the Court's jurisdiction?
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