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Why Is John Marshall Important

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John Marshall was a key founder of the judicial branch of government, with his political opinions he laid the foundation for the United States Supreme Court. He had practically no schooling and only studied law for a short amount of time, but changed the nation drastically for the better helping to determine what the constitution could and could not do. Through many court cases Marshall helped established the power of state and federal government, creating the prosperous nation that is known today. John Marshall’s most important trial was Marbury vs Madison in 1803, this famous court case established what became the most important practice in the Supreme Court, judicial review. William Marbury the Secretary of Peace started a petition for which his commission was not delivered by the Secretary of State. Marbury pushed to sue James Madison for not receiving the commission, but under the Judiciary Act of 1789 the petition brought to the Supreme Court was declared unconstitutional and therefore illegal along with James Madison not delivering the commission. Thus the case ended establishing judicial review, which led to a set of rules that put the state and federal powers in check. The reason judicial review is so important is because it gave the federal court the power to decide whether or not something was …show more content…

The state of Maryland attempted to tax all notes not chartered in the state, this was a clear target put on the Bank of the United States. This case helped prove that the bank was indeed constitutional and that the states did not have the power to claim something unconstitutional, further instituting the federal and state power boundaries. As the series continued a common theme started to show itself, it's that federal power massively outweighs state power, which the United States founding fathers wanted to

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