Today in Supreme Court History: October 25
- captcrisis
- Oct 24
- 1 min read
Myers v. United States, 272 U.S. 52 (decided October 25, 1926): President can remove officers appointed with consent of Senate (here, a postmaster) without Senate approval (Constitution is silent on the issue); striking down 1876 statute and (finally) striking down Tenure of Office Act under which Andrew Johnson had been impeached
Gegiow v. Uhl, 239 U.S. 3 (decided October 25, 1915): alien cannot be excluded on grounds that “overstocked labor market” in Portland (Ore.) would likely result in him becoming a public charge; grounds must be nation-based, not locality-based
Vicksburg & M.R. Co. v. Putnam, 118 U.S. 545 (decided October 25, 1886): in Federal Employer Liability Act action, judge should have instructed jury that they are not bound by actuarial tables of life expectancy, but can use their own judgment
When Ulysses S. Grant became President, Congress promptly passed a new Judiciary act, replacing the one that kept Andrew Johnson from appointing new Supreme Court justices (the excuse was attrition). I'm surprised no Congress in 50 years removed the Tenure of Office Act.