What was the marbury v Madison dispute?

Answer 1

There were several important issues involved in Marbury v. Madison, (1803). The legal complaint related to Secretary of State James Madison's (actually President Jefferson's) refusal to deliver Marbury's and several other men's legal commissions so they could begin serving as Justices of the Peace for the District of Columbia. John Adams and a lame duck Congress made these political appointments in the last two days of Adams' administration in order to pack the courts with members of the Federalist party. Thomas Jefferson, the incoming President, intercepted the commissions before they could be delivered, discarded some, and reappointed members of the Democratic-Republic party to others.

William Marbury, Dennis Ramsay, William Harper, and Robert Hooey were among those whose commissions had been withheld, preventing them from taking office as justices of the peace. Their attorney, Charles Lee, filed a petition for a writ of mandamus with the US Supreme Court, requesting the Court order Madison (who had yet to take office) to deliver the sealed documents.

The second problem involved Chief Justice Marshall's ability (or lack thereof) to gain cooperation from the Executive branch of government, without inciting an open power struggle between Marshall and Jefferson that could potentially weaken the influence of the Judiciary branch.

Marshall developed an ingenious strategy to solve these problems: The Court ruled that Marbury et al., were entitled to their commissions, but that the Court lacked jurisdiction to order Madison to deliver the necessary documents. According to Marshall, Section 13 of the Judiciary Act of 1789, which authorized the Supreme Court to issue extraordinary writs to federal government officials, was unconstitutional because Congress attempted to confer authority on the Court that was not specified in the Constitution.

The Court held that Marbury would have to pursue litigation in the lower courts first (which he never did). In this way, Marshall tied a narrow decision Jefferson wanted to an action that increased the Court's power, by affirming the right of judicial review, or the ability to declare acts of Congress unconstitutional.

Case Citation:

Marbury v. Madison, 5 US 137 (1803)

For more information, see Related Questions, below.

Answer 2

The case of Marbury vs. Madison involved William Marbury, who believed that the Judiciary Act of 1879 entitled him to an appointment as a justice of the peace by James Madison, who had not yet appointed him. Chief Justice John Marshall realized that the Judiciary Act conflicted with the Constitution. This act gave the Supreme Court powers that were not implied in the Constitution. Because the Constitution is the supreme law of the land, the Judiciary Act was declared unconstitutional.