Explain the actions that led to the case of Marbury v. Madison and why the Supreme Court's ruling in the case was significant for the judiciary

Answer:

An ideal response will:
1. Explain that the Federalists tried to hang on to power following the election of Thomas Jefferson by "packing" the judiciary and that when Jefferson refused to deliver all the commissions, one of the proposed judges who did not receive his commission, William Marbury, sought action from the courts.
2. Identify how Justice Marshall's ruling in the case made justices the official interpreters of the Constitution, which opened the door to laws enacted by Congress and approved by the president being challenged in court and to litigation not only supplementing, but sometimes taking precedence over, legislation as a way to make public policy.