What was the political motivation behind the Judiciary Act of 1801?

Answer 1

The Judiciary Act of 1801 was controversial for a number of reasons, all related to partisan differences between the Federalist and Democratic-Republican parties.

First, the Act reorganized the judiciary and added six Circuit Courts that assumed jurisdiction over federal cases that had previously been tried by the States, shifting judicial power from the states to the federal government, which the Democratic-Republicans opposed because they believed it weakened the states.

Second, the Democratic-Republicans were concerned about the Act enhancing the federal judiciary's ability to prosecute members of their party under the Sedition Act, which made it a crime to publish "false, scandalous, and malicious writing" against the federal government. The legitimacy of this argument is somewhat questionable, because the law was set to sundown on March 3, 1801.

Third, the Judiciary Act reduced the size of the Supreme Court from six justices to five, by attrition. The likely outcome would be to deprive incoming President Thomas Jefferson the opportunity to make an appointment to the Court.

Finally, and most importantly, President Adams used provisions of the Judiciary Act of 1801 to fill the Judicial Branch with Federalist judges before his administration ended. Critics of Adams' court-packing dubbed the law the "Midnight Judges Act," for his last-minute appointments.

New President Thomas Jefferson realized Adams was attempting to use the Judicial Branch as a stronghold for the waning Federalist party, in order to maintain some control over the government. The problem was compounded by the fact that Article III allows these judges and justices to serve during "good behavior," which is tantamount to a lifetime appointment as long as the judge doesn't commit an impeachable offense.

The incoming Congress quickly repealed the Judiciary Act of 1801 and replaced it with the Judiciary Act of 1802, legislation that eliminated the federal courts expansion and the newly appointed judges along with it.