The Short Biography of John Marshall
John Marshall was the fourth Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, reigning from 1801-1835. Although John Marshall is not the second to assume the role of Chief Justice after John Jay, he is the first to assume the longest run in office. His role as Chief Justice helped strengthen the powers of the Supreme Court Judicial system and had a major influence on the development of the American legal system.
The establishment of John Marshall's rule for courts to apply judicial review is one of the most notable influences o the judicial system. This enforcement gave judicial systems the right to strike down laws that violate the Constitution.
Under the rule of John Marshall, the Supreme Court made several important decisions that balanced the powers between the Federal and State governments. John Marshall is mostly known for his role in a series of landmark Supreme Court cases. He was reviewed as the lead Federalist of his time, implementing rules to protect the rights of individuals and corporations, upholding the values of the Constitution.
One of Marshall's first landmark Supreme Court Cases was Marbury v. Madison, where Marshall enforced the judicial reviews once created by John Jay. Some opposed his ruling of this case, but Marshall was determined to make implementation of judicial review clear. It was ruled that no power of Government, not even the President, or court system as well as any voting party, had the right to implement their own views of the Constitution. This ruling ensured that the documents written in the Constitution overruled with a clear and firm standing, giving room for nothing else to be considered.
The case of McCulloch v. Maryland is another landmark case with which Marshall is associated. Under this case John Marshall ruled that states did not have the right to pass laws that violated the Constitution. He was a firm believer that the laws that made up the Constitution preceded every other law that would come to pass. His point of view expressed thatall laws made should be a reflection of what was set as the basis of American governance which all stems from the Constitution.
John Marshall's ruling of Federal laws preceding State laws was also part of the landmark Supreme Court cases implemented in 1821. This ruling pointed out that although State and Federal laws were separate, no State law has the right to overrule anything that has already been implemented as a Federal law. The last of the landmark Supreme Court cases under Marshall regulated interstate commerce as a Federal law.
Although some of the decisions made by John Marshall were not popular among other Government officials, these ruling helped carve out the basic functions of the Federal Government today. It also gave State laws a foundation upon which all laws should be based.
John Marshall's rulings of landmark Supreme Court cases help strengthen the core of the Federal Government. The practices and rulings under John Marshall were practical and helped streamline the branches of the Federal Government. John Marshall held his place as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court until he passed away in 1835.
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