Virginia v. Tennessee
Virginia v. Tennessee was a significant Supreme Court case that addressed the issue of state boundaries and the legal recognition of interstate compacts. The case arose from a dispute between Virginia and Tennessee regarding a joint boundary established by an 1803 survey, which had never received formal ratification from Congress. Virginia sought to nullify the survey results, prompting the Supreme Court to intervene. In an 8-0 decision, the Court ruled that Congress is not required to explicitly recognize every compact between states and is only obligated to ratify those that transfer federal power. Justice Stephen J. Field, who authored the Court's opinion, concluded that Congress had implicitly acknowledged the boundary through various indirect means. This case is notable for its implications regarding states' rights and the authority of interstate agreements, which continue to influence discussions on federalism and state sovereignty.
Virginia v. Tennessee
Date: April 3, 1893
Citation: 148 U.S. 503
Issues: States’ rights; interstate compacts
Significance: The Supreme Court established the rules governing state compacts.
Although Virginia and Tennessee had agreed to a joint boundary based on an 1803 survey, this agreement had never been ratified by Congress, and as a result Virginia tried to have the survey results nullified. By an 8-0 vote, the Supreme Court held that Congress did not have to explicitly recognize every compact and had to ratify only those that ceded federal power to states. Justice Stephen J. Field, in his opinion for the Court, found that Congress had implicitly recognized the boundary in various indirect ways. Justice John Marshall Harlan did not participate.
