American Politics Today - Essentials (3rd Ed)

THE AMERICAN LEGAL AND JUDICIAL SYSTEM| 363

the government is a party. For example, when an environmental group challenged
the Interior Department’s interpretation of the Endangered Species Act, the Court
ruled that it did not have standing because it did not demonstrate that the govern-
ment’s policy would cause “imminent” injury to the group.^9 As we discuss below
in the section on how cases get to the Supreme Court, federal judges have some
leeway in defi ning standing.

standing Legitimate justifi cation

for bringing a civil case to court.

TABLETABLE » »^ 12.15.1

SUPREME COURT CASES OVERRULING PRECEDENT AND ACTS OF

CONGRESS, 1789–2011

The Supreme Court has overruled precedent in a far higher proportion of cases in the past 60 years than it did
during the fi rst 160 years of U.S. history. More acts of Congress have also been struck down in recent years—but even
in some earlier periods, the Court has played an activist role. What do these data say about the role of the Supreme
Court within our constitutional system?

COURT (CHIEF JUSTICE) YEARS

CASES OVERRULING

PRECEDENT

PRECEDENTS

OVERRULED

CASES OVERRULING

ACTS OF CONGRESS

ACTS OVERRULED

PER YEAR

Jay Court 1789–1795 0 0 0 0

Rutledge Court 1795 0 0 0 0

Ellsworth Court 1796–1800 0 0 0 0

Marshall Court 1801–1836 1 1 1 0.03

Taney Court 1836–1864 2 3 1 0.03

Chase Court 1864–1874 1 1 8 0.8

Waite Court 1874–1888 9 11 7 0.5

Fuller Court 1888–1910 3 4 13 0.52

White Court 1910–1921 4 4 10 1.1

Taft Court 1921–1930 5 6 13 1.44

Hughes Court 1930–1941 15 22 15 1.36

Stone Court 1941–1946 8 11 1 0.20

Vinson Court 1946–1953 6 11 2 0.28

Warren Court 1953–1969 37 53 23 1.44

Burger Court 1969–1986 46 62 31 1.82

Rehnquist Court 1986–2005 38 44 35 1.84

Roberts Court 2005–present 8 n.a. 8 1.3

Note: This table includes only cases in which the reversal of precedent is clearly stated in the Court decision. A single case can overrule more
than one precedent.
Source: For 1789–2003, David G. Savage, Guide to the Supreme Court, 4th ed. (Washington, DC: CQ Press, 2004), pp. 320, 1192–1204. For 2004–11,
The Supreme Court Database, Washington University, http://scdb.wustl.edu (accessed 10/2/12).