Why was Marbury vs Madison important an important US Supreme Court case?

Answer 1

Marbury v Madison, (1803) is credited with being the case in which Chief Justice John Marshall formally established the Judicial Branch's (specifically, the US Supreme Court's) right of judicial review.

The doctrine of judicial review is the authority of a court to evaluate the constitutionality of a law, executive order, treaty or policy relevant to a case under review. If the law is determined to be in conflict with constitutional principles, the Court can nullify the law and render it unenforceable.

In Marbury, Chief Justice Marshall declared Congress has overstepped its constitutional authority when it attempted to expand the Supreme Court's original jurisdiction by empowering the Court to issue writs of mandamus (a court order compelling an official action) against government officials.

Since the Constitution did not expressly state the Supreme Court had original jurisdiction, Marshall reasoned the Court could only issue those writs under its appellate jurisdiction (on appeal, after another court had ruled first). As a result, Marshall overturned as unconstitutional Section 13 of the Judiciary Act of 1789.

This was the first time the Supreme Court declared an Act of Congress unconstitutional. Judicial review gave the Court a means of checking the power of the Legislative and Executive Branches of government, and elevated the Judicial Branch to a co-equal status in government.

Case Citation:

Marbury v. Madison, 5 US 137 (1803)

Answer 2

The US Supreme Court decision on the Marbury vs Madison case was important because it established a precedent in US case law. It meant that without a law case beginning with a lawsuit or other constitutional problem taking a long time to reach the Supreme Court, the Court itself could involve itself in constitutional matters as the Court deemed to be very important issues to be settled.