McCarran-Ferguson Act
In enacting the McCarran-Ferguson Act in 1945, the U.S. Congress established in law the current unique regulatory regime of the states in regard to the nation’s…
Dormant Commerce Clause
See Commerce among the States.
Gonzales v. Raich (2005)
Gonzales v. Raich, 545 U.S. 1 (2005) is an important episode in struggles between the federal government and states over drug regulations. Angel Raich…
Printz v. United States (1997)
In Printz v. United States (1997), the U.S. Supreme Court struck down provisions of the federal Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act for unconstitutionally intruding on state sovereignty under…
O’Connor, Sandra Day
Since her Senate confirmation in 1981 until her retirement in 2005, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor had been the U.S. Supreme Court’s foremost voice on…
New York v. United States (1992)
In New York v. United States (1992), the U.S. Supreme Court struck down provisions of the federal Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Amendments Act of…
Perez v. United States (1971)
In Perez v. United States (1971), the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the federal Consumer Credit Protection Act, which, among other things, made “loan sharking”…
Lochner v. New York (1905)
Lochner v. New York is a 1905 decision in which the Supreme Court invalidated a New York statute that set the maximum number of…
Cooley v. Board of Wardens (1852)
In Cooley v. Board of Wardens (1852), the U.S. Supreme Court, by a vote of 7–2, upheld the constitutionality of a Pennsylvania law that…
Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)
Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) gave Chief Justice John Marshall his first opportunity to expound his broad interpretation of the Commerce Clause. The complicated legal…
Interstate Commerce Act of 1887
On April 5, 1887, the Interstate Commerce Act became law. Its purpose was to stop unfair railroad practices carried out by monopolies. From the…
Commerce with the Indian Tribes
The power to regulate commerce with the Indian Tribes was placed in the Constitution to clarify and continue a power over Indian commerce and…
