GED Social Studies
Landmark Supreme Court Cases
A handful of Supreme Court cases set rules the test returns to constantly. Each case is a one-line rule with a name attached. Learn the rule; the question will describe the rule and ask for the name, or name the case and ask for the rule.
The words first
- precedent
- a ruling that guides later cases
- judicial review
- the Court's power to void unconstitutional laws
- overturn
- a later Court reversing an earlier ruling (Brown overturned Plessy)
- incorporation
- applying Bill of Rights protections against the states via the 14th
The method
THE SHORT LIST — case → one-line rule
Marbury v. Madison (1803) courts can strike down laws
(judicial review born)
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) "separate but equal" allowed ✗
Brown v. Board (1954) school segregation unconstitutional —
OVERTURNS Plessy
Miranda v. Arizona (1966) police must state your rights
before questioning
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) can't afford a lawyer? state provides
Tinker v. Des Moines (1969) students keep speech rights at school
THE PAIR TO KNOW AS A STORY
Plessy 1896 blessed segregation → Brown 1954 killed it:
"separate is inherently unequal" — precedent CAN fall
Worked all the way through
The problem
After an arrest, police question a suspect for hours without ever mentioning his right to remain silent or to a lawyer; he confesses. Which case makes the confession vulnerable, and why?
- Step 1 — Spot the scene.Custodial questioning with no rights warning.
- Step 2 — Match the rule.Miranda v. Arizona: before questioning someone in custody, police must state the rights — silence, and a lawyer.
- Step 3 — Apply it.No warning was given, so the confession can be excluded from trial. (The arrest itself may stand — Miranda governs the questioning.)
On the board
custody + questioning + no warning
the scene
Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
the matching case
rights must be stated first
the rule
confession excludable
the consequence
Answer
Miranda v. Arizona — un-warned custodial confessions can be thrown out
A second one, in a different form
Which case established that the Supreme Court can declare a law unconstitutional, and why does it matter?
the power: judicial review
Marbury v. Madison, 1803
makes courts a true check on the other branches
Answer
Marbury v. Madison — it created judicial review, the judiciary's great check
The usual mistake
Reversing Plessy and Brown. Plessy allowed segregation; Brown struck it down.
Check yourself
Learn each case as scene → rule → name, in that order. When a question tells a story, match the scene first; the name follows. And remember the one reversal story: Brown overturned Plessy — precedent is strong, not permanent.
Practice it
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