Rutgers v. Waddington: Alexander Hamilton, the End of the War

Rutgers v. Waddington: Alexander Hamilton, the End of the War for Independence, and the Origins of Judicial Review (Landmark Law Cases and American Society)

Once the dust of the Revolution settled, the problem of reconciling the erstwhile warring factions arose, and as is often the case in the aftermath of violent revolutions, the matter made its way into the legal arena. Rutgers v. Waddington was such a case. Through this little-known but remarkable dispute over back rent for a burned-down brewery, Peter Charles Hoffer recounts a tale of political and constitutional intrigue involving some of the most important actors in Americaâ€™s transition from a confederation of states under the Articles of Confederation to a national republic under the U.S. Constitution.

At the end of the Revolution, the widow Rutgers and her sons returned to the brewery theyâ€™d abandoned when the British had occupied New York. They demanded rent from Waddington, the loyalist who had rented the facility under the British occupation. Under a punitive New York state law, the loyalist Waddington was liable. But the peace treatyâ€™s provisions protecting loyalistsâ€™ property rights said otherwise. Appearing for the defendants was war veteran, future Federalist, and first secretary of the treasury, Alexander Hamilton. And, as always, lurking in the background was the estimable Aaron Burr. As Hoffer details Hamilton's arguments for the supremacy of treaty law over state law, the significance of Rutgers v. Waddington in the development of a strong central government emerges clearlyâ€”as does the role of the courts in bridging the young nationâ€™s divisions in the Revolutionâ€™s wake.

Rutgers v. Waddington illustrates a foundational moment in American history. As such, it is an encapsulation of a society riven by war, buffeted by revolutionary change attempting to piece together the true meaning of, in John Adamsâ€™ formulation, â€œrule by law, and not by men.â€
Country USA
Brand University Press of Kansas
Manufacturer University Press of Kansas
Binding Paperback
ReleaseDate 2016-01-25
UnitCount 1
EANs 9780700622054

Country	USA
Brand	University Press of Kansas
Manufacturer	University Press of Kansas
Binding	Paperback
ReleaseDate	2016-01-25
UnitCount	1
EANs	9780700622054

Rutgers v. Waddington: Alexander Hamilton, the End of the War for Independence, and the Origins of Judicial Review (Landmark Law Cases and American Society)

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