McReynolds–Sutherland–Van Devanter–Butler voting bloc

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The McReynolds–Sutherland–Van Devanter–Butler voting bloc was a group of four conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices in the 1930s who frequently voted together to strike down New Deal legislation.

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Statements (40)

Predicate Object
instanceOf group of United States Supreme Court justices
voting bloc
activeInPeriod 1930s
alsoKnownAs Four Horsemen NERFINISHED
branchOfGovernment judicial branch of the United States federal government
compositionCharacteristic all four justices were appointed by Republican presidents
contemporaneousWith Franklin D. Roosevelt administration NERFINISHED
country United States of America
surface form: United States
courtLevel highest court in the United States
era Lochner era NERFINISHED
followedBy New Deal–friendly Supreme Court majority
historicalContext constitutional crisis over New Deal legislation
historicalSignificance symbol of judicial resistance to the New Deal
ideology conservatism
influencedEvent Roosevelt’s 1937 court-packing plan
jurisdiction federal constitutional law
legalPhilosophy Lochner-era substantive due process
limited interpretation of the Commerce Clause
location Washington, D.C.
member George Sutherland NERFINISHED
James Clark McReynolds NERFINISHED
Pierce Butler NERFINISHED
Willis Van Devanter NERFINISHED
notableFor striking down New Deal legislation
numberOfMembers 4
opposed New Deal NERFINISHED
opposedBy Benjamin N. Cardozo NERFINISHED
Charles Evans Hughes NERFINISHED
Harlan F. Stone NERFINISHED
Louis Brandeis NERFINISHED
partOf Supreme Court of the United States NERFINISHED
positionOnAdministrativeState suspicious of expanding federal administrative agencies
positionOnEconomicRegulation hostile to broad federal economic regulation
positionOnLaborRegulation skeptical of federal labor protections
positionOnNewDeal frequently voted to invalidate New Deal programs
positionOnStatesRights favored stronger role for states in economic regulation
precededBy earlier conservative majorities on the Supreme Court
timeframeEnd late 1930s
timeframeStart early 1930s
votingPattern frequently voted together

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Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Four Horsemen (Supreme Court) hasPart McReynolds–Sutherland–Van Devanter–Butler voting bloc