| Venue: |
SCOTUS
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| Facts: |
Marbury was appointed Justice of the Peace by Adams; congress approves,
secretary of state (John Marshall, apparently) approves, but not
all appointments got delivered. In the meantime, Jefferson becomes
president and attempts to block the appointments. |
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| Posture: |
Straight to the USSC. |
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| Issue: |
Three issues:
- Does Marbury have the right to the commission?
- If so, and the right has been violated, does the law give
him a remedy?
- If so, is the remedy a writ of mandamus from this court?
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| Holding: |
Yes, yes, and yes. |
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| Rule: |
- When the president has signed a commission and the secretary
of state has sealed it, it's a complete thing, and to
deprive the addresse of it is a violation.
- The whole duty of the law is to protect against violation,
so there must be a remedy.
- The judiciary's primary duty is to overrule things that
conflict with the constitution.
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| Reasoning: |
If we didn't do this, the Constitution would be essentially
meaningless. The reason people delegate power is for the
protection of rights. The Constitution is the supreme law.
Therefore, anything that conflicts with the Constitution
must be struck down. |
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| Dicta: |
The oath of office includes the oath to protect the Constitution. |
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