Gibbson v. Odgen

Question 1

Facts

Answer 1

• Robert Fulton = invents steamboat
  
  • was as important to 19th century economy as trucks and buses are today
  • partners with robert livingstong, signer of declraration of indepedence and NY politican
• NY Legislature grants them a monopoly on steamboat traffic into NYC
  
  • Fulton sells his monopoly to Aaron Ogden
• Thomas Gibbons
  
  • ran a passanger ferry between Elizabethtown NJ, other ports in NJ and staten island based on a liscence fro the federal 1793 coasting act
  • had no permission from NYC or Nj, but congress passed a law sayign some sort of burecacy would pass out liscence to those dealign in coastal trades → liscnce given from congress
  • refused to honor the nY monopoly so ogden takes him to court

Question 2

Issues

Answer 2

• Does the commecrce class authorize the federal government to grant liscenses to cosotal vessels doing business across state lines
  
  • narrow way of understanding the case
• To address this narrow issue the court has to tackle 3 broad principles of law
  
  1. what does commerce include
  2. when does congress gain power over commerce
  3. how much power does congress enjoy over commerce
     
     1. limits on power → internal v. external

Question 3

Commerce Clause

Answer 3

• 3 ? = relevant to fleshing out meaning of three diff parts of commerce clause

“Congress shall have power to regulate commerce with foreign nations + among the states + with the indian tribes” → Article 1, section 8, clause 3*

• congress = power to act because we have commerce amongst the states → relevant to question 3
  - internal limit = if something is not about interstate or international commerce = congress cannot touch it = limit
  - tricky = marshall is not clear if among the states = internal or external limit
  
  • ? of what does among the states mean → has to do with the ? of when congress gains power over commerce + when can it get involved given that some sort of comemerce = implicated
    
    • unless it crosses lines explicitly laid out = might not belong to congress at all
• power to regulate → power over something = how much power can congress use if its congress + if it commerce among the states = ? 3

Question 4

what is being regulated

Answer 4

• “The subject to be regulated is commerce; and our constitution being one of enumeration and not definition, to ascertain the extent of the it becomes necessary to settle the meaning of the word”
• an argument similar to MuCulloch v. Maryland => have to do some of the fleshing out of the message on the spot = enumeration = bullet points
• constitution = not partake in the detailedness of legal codes = undermines what its supposed to do
• take bullet point and flesh it out in narrow way → Anything that does not fit into this = not enumerated power
• Strcutralist approch: vague definitions allow you to brethe life into document so that it is more sucessfull
• do not want to be in a situation where you have to amendment the consiution all the time
• if you believe in constitution of enumeration and not definition you do not have to hit control F to find the word bank

Question 5

Contending Definitions of Commerce (Gibbson argument)

Answer 5

-“the counsel for the appellee would limit it to limit it to traffic, to buying and selling or the interchange fo commodities and do not admit that it comprehends navigation”

• want narrow definition of commerce
• Gibbson argument

Question 6

Contending Definitions of Commerce (Marshall’s response)

Answer 6

• this would restrict a general term, applicable to many objects to one of its signficiations
• would undermine congress’s power
• wants broader understanding of the word commerce
• more then just buying and selling

-“Commerce undountely is traffic but it is something more: it is intercourse”

• Webster’s first dictionary: 1828
  
  • means running between → communication, commerce, connection by reciprocal dealings between persons or nations
    
    • general definition
• In this definition → does navigation fall under the definition of commerce as intercourse

-“the power over commerce includes navigation, was one of the primary obejcts for which people of america adopted their government “ –> fair and uniform rules for how to transport goods and people across state lines = constiution did this

• Marshall gives originalist argument
• if you want to look at whats included in term, look at what is excluded from it

article 1 section 9 → cannot exclude stuff from ports of other states

“a power to regulate navigation is as expressly granted as of that term has been added to the word commerce” –> have to get to navigation by defining commerce as intercorse → this extra step does not matter

Question 7

What does commerce include?

Answer 7

“the power over commerce, including navigation, was one of the primary objects for which the people of America adopted their government

“a power to regulate navigation, is as expressly granted, as if that term had been added to the word commerce”

Question 8

When can congress regulate commerce

Answer 8

• matters of geography = congress’s power to intervene go further than boarders
• can regulate things within states -> can invade things that look like they fall within the pervue of state gov
• as long as it crosses state lines = the business of congress
• if you having something located completely within another state and does not affect other states = congress = has no business
• crossing state lines = implicates the other states = power to regulate
• something that does not cross state lines but generally affects other states = congress = power to regulate

Question 9

internal limits on federal power

Answer 9

• internal limits are found within the clause being interpreted
• example XYZ = is not commerce, so congress can’t regulate it
• outside definition of what congress can do outside the commerce clause = internal limits
• among the states = set up the idea that commerce that only deals with one state = not within congressional power
• internal limit = found within commerce clause itself

Question 10

external limits on federal power

Answer 10

• external limits = imposed by other clauses in the constitution
• 10th amendment = relevant for commerce
• congress = not just violating clause power by involving in something that is only relevant to one state but is also violating the 10th amendment
• imposed by other clauses in the constiution

Question 11

internal + external limits on federal power

Answer 11

• larger debate over the consiutions role in regulating the economy
• under this defintion of commerce, congress can only intervene when states abuse their power and push things across state lines -> keep states from undermining each other -> more limited power

Question 12

How much power does congress have

Answer 12

the power to regulate + describe the rule in which commerce is to be governed

• this power ackloedges no limitations other than are prescribed in the constitution
• still leaves the door open to the 10th amendment serving as an external limit
• congress = limited to list of enumerated powers
  
  • within those powers = its ability to act = complete
  • congress power to act over national and international congress = so great you can pretend that the states don’t exist → they do not have to exist meaning that they having nothing reserved to them that counts as an external limit to congress power

when congress regulates something the regulation must be uniform across the states → preventing misuse of congress clause = vote and get a uniform congress

Question 13

Concurrent Powers

Answer 13

• odgen argued that the consituion reconginzes state laws requiring inspections of cargo (that cross state lines)
• if congress has said nothing, then states can act
• once state law conflicts with a federal law, federal law trumps
• allowing 1 exception to commerce clause = make senses for it to be this
  
  • state gov = authoiruty to make regulations promoting the health, safety, welfare, ad morality of its people
  • inspect things that cross the boarder to make sure that they are safe
• would be one thing if congress says nothing about who can travel in and out of ports → once congress says something federal law will trump it = supremacy clause
  
  • odgen looses his monopoly status → must allow competition