Martin v. Hunter's Lessee, 14 U.S. 304 (1816)

This case involved a dispute between a British citizen and a Virginia citizen over title to land seized from the British citizen during the Revolutionary War. After the war, a treaty purported to resolve all such property disputes. The underlying question was whether the title in the property had vested prior to the signing of the relevant treaty, which would mean that the treaty was not controlling. The Virginia courts held that the Virginia citizen should retain title to the property and the British citizen appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. In the initial appeal, the Supreme Court ruled for the British citizen and remanded the case to the Virginia courts. But the Virginia courts refused to enforce the Court's order, arguing that the U.S. Supreme Court does not have appellate jurisdiction over state court decisions, even on federal law issues. The Virginia court held that Section 25 of the 1789 Judiciary Act, granting the Supreme Court appellate jurisdiction over state courts, was unconstitutional. The British citizen again appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court on the question of its jurisdiction.