In __________ the Supreme Court for the first time, in a decision authored by Chief Justice John Marshall, held that the Court could declare an act of Congress unconstitutional

• A. Marbury v. Madison
• B. Gibbons v. Ogden
• C. Georgia v. U.S.
• D. Dred Scott

Answer: (A)

Judicial review is the power of the courts to interpret the Constitution and strike down laws or government actions that conflict with it. In Marbury v. Madison, the Supreme Court, in a decision written by Chief Justice John Marshall, for the first time declared that an act of Congress was unconstitutional. The case arose when William Marbury sought a writ of mandamus to force the new secretary of state to deliver his commission, and Marshall used it to decide that a portion of the Judiciary Act of 1789 extended the Court beyond its constitutional authority. He emphasized that the Constitution is the supreme law, and when a law clashes with it, the judiciary must say so. This established the principle of judicial review, giving the Court a crucial check on Congress and ensuring that laws conform to the Constitution. The other cases mentioned deal with different issues—such as Congress’s power over interstate commerce or topics surrounding slavery—so they do not embody the first assertion of judicial review over congressional acts.