The Opinion Of Justice Binderoff - 1177 Words

The opinion of Justice BINDEROFF: According to Article I, Section 8(3) of the United States Constitution, Congress is granted the power â€Å"to regulate commerce with foreign countries, as well as among the several states†¦;† this enumerated power is what the Commerce Clause describes. This Article has been used to justify many instances in which Congress has exercised its power to regulate commerce, especially among states. In this regard, there has been a myriad of instances in which such exercise of this congressional power has been challenged. The first instance, was in the case of Gibbons v Ogden (1984), where two men who had been given exclusive licenses by the state of New York to carry passengers to Elizabeth Town from New York, filed a suit in court to block another steamship operator, Gibbons, who had been newly granted a license to carry passengers on that very route, from competing with them. In this case, the Chief Justice found out that Congress was right within its powers – granted by the Commerce Clause - to grant the ferrying license to Mr. Gibbons. The Chief Justice, Marshal, argued that commerce was more than just the selling and purchase of goods, but included other parts of the commercial intercourse between states, such as transport. The argument by the Chief Justice in this context is important in understanding the extent of commerce that falls under the Commerce Clause as intended by the framers. In order to understand why Congress was within its powers