HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Happy Birthday Marbury v. Madison! 5 U.S. 137 (1803) Decided February 24, 1803 (the case was argued thirteen days before the decision was issued.)

205 years old and despite the current White House, still going strong!
"The government of the United States has been emphatically termed a government of laws and not of men. It will certainly cease to deserve this high appellation, if the laws furnish no remedy for the violation of a vested legal right…It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department [the courts] to say what the law is…”

Speaking of the nifty nine, (although the Marbury decision was decided 4-0) on Monday the Supreme Court
is scheduled to hear argument in Cuellar v. United States (06-1456), on whether the federal money laundering statute requires an attempt to create the appearance of legitimate wealth. That has some relevance to the goings on in our fair city. We got that info from the ever helpful SCOTUS blog.

Our guest bloggers yesterday, “Perry & Mason” stirred up some controversy in the comments section. Rumpole says: well done, and reminds readers that we do not necessarily endorse the comments of the readers who become guest bloggers. This is an open forum for our community and we invite others to participate.


Spring is in the air. It’s warmer, but not yet sticky. There are cool breezes at night. It’s nice to be alive.

See You In Court, where we rarely cite Marbury v. Madison.