List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 11
This is a list of cases reported in volume 11 of United States Reports, decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1812 and 1813.
Nominative reports
In 1874, the U.S. government created the United States Reports, and retroactively numbered older privately published case reports as part of the new series. As a result, cases appearing in volumes 1–90 of U.S. Reports have dual citation forms; one for the volume number of U.S. Reports, and one for the volume number of the reports named for the relevant reporter of decisions.William Cranch
Starting with the 5th volume of U.S. Reports, the Reporter of Decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States was William Cranch. Cranch was Reporter of Decisions from 1801 to 1815, covering volumes 5 through 13 of United States Reports which correspond to volumes 1 through 9 of his Cranch's Reports. As such, the dual form of citation to, for example, Wells v. United States is 11 U.S. 22.Justices of the Supreme Court at the time of 11 U.S. (7 Cranch)
The Supreme Court is established by Article Three of [the United States Constitution|Article III, Section 1] of the Constitution of the United States, which says: "The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court...". The size of the Court is not specified; the Constitution leaves it to Congress to set the number of justices. Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 Congress originally fixed the number of justices at six. Since 1789 Congress has varied the size of the Court from six to seven, nine, ten, and back to nine justices.When the cases in 11 U.S. were decided, the Court comprised these seven justices:
| Portrait | Justice | Office | Home State | Succeeded | Date confirmed by the Senate | Tenure on Supreme Court |
| John Marshall | Chief Justice | Virginia | Oliver Ellsworth | – July 6, 1835 | ||
| Bushrod Washington | Associate [Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States|Associate Justice] | Virginia | James Wilson | – November 26, 1829 | ||
| William Johnson | Associate Justice | South Carolina | Alfred Moore | – August 4, 1834 | ||
| Henry Brockholst Livingston | Associate Justice | New York | William Paterson | – March 18, 1823 | ||
| Thomas Todd | Associate Justice | Kentucky | new seat | – February 7, 1826 | ||
| Gabriel Duvall | Associate Justice | Maryland | Samuel Chase | – January 12, 1835 | ||
| Joseph Story | Associate Justice | Massachusetts | William Cushing | – September 10, 1845 |
Notable cases in 11 U.S. (7 Cranch)
''United States v. Hudson''
In United States v. Hudson, , the Court held that Congress must first enact a constitutional law criminalizing an activity, attach a penalty, and give the federal courts jurisdiction over the offense for a federal court to render a conviction.''The Schooner Exchange v. M'Faddon''
In The Schooner Exchange v. McFaddon, , the Court considered the jurisdiction of federal courts over a claim against a friendly foreign military vessel visiting an American port. The court interpreted customary international law to determine that there was no federal jurisdiction.''Fairfax's Devisee v. Hunter's Lessee''
Fairfax's Devisee v. Hunter's Lessee, , was a case arising out of the acquisition of land in Virginia. For the Court, Justice Joseph Story refused to accept as final the Virginia Court of Appeals' interpretation of Virginia law. He found that precedents in Virginia law itself upheld the titles in question. Story's decision to "look into" Virginia law was a vital step in securing federal supremacy. Otherwise, the federal courts could be effectively blocked, by a state court's decision, from addressing a federal question — in this case a British national's rights under treaties with Britain.''Queen v. Hepburn''
Queen v. Hepburn, , was a case in which a Maryland slave sued for her freedom. In support of her claim, her attorney offered several depositions containing testimony favorable to her. Chief Justice Marshall, who was a slave-owner, affirmed the lower court's judgment against the woman on the basis that the deposition statements were hearsay, and so were properly excluded from evidence. Dissenting, Justice Gabriel Duvall of Maryland, although also a slave-owner, pointed out that under Maryland law certain hearsay can legitimately be admitted to establish land boundaries, and that hearsay in cases involving freedom should be admitted as well.Duvall wrote:
Citation style
Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 the federal court structure at the time comprised District Courts, which had general trial jurisdiction; Circuit Courts, which had mixed trial and appellate jurisdiction; and the United States Supreme Court, which had appellate jurisdiction over the federal District and Circuit courts—and for certain issues over state courts. The Supreme Court also had limited original jurisdiction. There were one or more federal District Courts and/or Circuit Courts in each state, territory, or other geographical region.Bluebook citation style is used for case names, citations, and jurisdictions.
- "C.C.D." = United States Circuit Court for the District of...
- * e.g.,"C.C.D.N.J." = United States Circuit Court for the District of New Jersey
- "D." = United States District Court for the District of...
- * e.g.,"D. Mass." = United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
- "E." = Eastern; "M." = Middle; "N." = Northern; "S." = Southern; "W." = Western
- * e.g.,"C.C.S.D.N.Y." = United States Circuit Court for the Southern District of New York
- * e.g.,"M.D. Ala." = United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama
- "Ct. Cl." = United States Court of Claims
- The abbreviation of a state's name alone indicates the highest appellate court in that state's judiciary at the time.
- * e.g.,"Pa." = Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
- * e.g.,"Me." = Supreme Judicial Court of Maine