Landmark Supreme Court Cases Flashcards

Which landmark Supreme Court case established the principle of judicial review, empowering the Court to declare an act of the legislative or executive branch unconstitutional?

Answer: Marbury v. Madison

In the 1803 case Marbury v. Madison, the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice John Marshall, ruled that Section 13 of the Judiciary Act of 1789 was unconstitutional. This decision established the precedent of judicial review, which is the power of the federal courts to determine the constitutionality of laws and governmental actions.

A high school student wears a black armband to school to protest a war, and the school suspends them for violating a rule against disruptive symbols. Which Supreme Court case would be most relevant to determining if the student's First Amendment rights were violated?

Answer: Tinker v. Des Moines

Tinker v. Des Moines (1969) is the key case regarding student speech rights in public schools. The Court famously ruled that students do not 'shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate.' The school would need to prove that the armbands would 'materially and substantially interfere' with the educational environment to justify the suspension.

The Supreme Court's decision in *Gideon v. Wainwright* (1963) is a landmark case primarily because it affirmed the right to what?

Answer: Legal counsel for indigent defendants in felony cases

The unanimous decision in Gideon v. Wainwright held that the Sixth Amendment's guarantee of a right to counsel applies to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment. This means that state courts are required to provide an attorney to criminal defendants who are unable to afford their own.

Which of the following Supreme Court rulings established the 'separate but equal' doctrine, which was later overturned by *Brown v. Board of Education*?

Answer: Plessy v. Ferguson

The 1896 decision in Plessy v. Ferguson upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation under the 'separate but equal' doctrine. This precedent was famously overturned in the field of public education by the Court's 1954 decision in Brown v. Board of Education, which declared that 'separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.'

The requirement for law enforcement to inform suspects in custody of their right to remain silent and their right to an attorney stems from which landmark Supreme Court decision?

Answer: Miranda v. Arizona

In Miranda v. Arizona (1966), the Supreme Court ruled that detained criminal suspects, prior to police questioning, must be informed of their constitutional right to an attorney and against self-incrimination. These are now famously known as 'Miranda rights.'

The case of *McCulloch v. Maryland* (1819) was significant because it reinforced the power of the federal government by upholding which two key principles?

Answer: Implied powers and the supremacy of federal law

In McCulloch v. Maryland, the Supreme Court ruled that Congress had implied powers under the Necessary and Proper Clause to create the Second Bank of the United States. It also ruled that the state of Maryland could not tax the bank, affirming the supremacy of federal law over state law when there is a conflict.