The Power of Our Supreme Court: How Supreme Court Cases Shape Democracy

by Matt Beat

Mr. Beat’s The Power of Our Supreme Court is the Supreme Court book of decisions that affect the everyday lives of Americans everywhere. The real democracy of America unveiled. What does the supreme court do? Sure, people care when the court makes a big ruling, but most don’t pay attention to the court’s day-to-day decisions. In this law book, Mr. Beat takes you on a journey through our Supreme Court system, what it is, who is in it and how they got to be there while foreshadowing how it shapes our very future.  A tour of the most influential cases in history. Inspired by Mr. Beat’s court series, The Power of Our Supreme Court walks through many Supreme Court history cases from landmark cases to the more obscure. Matt Beat explains how each case affects us to this day in a way that is engaging, applicable, and easy to understand, even for beginners. Inside, you’ll If you like courtroom books, legal books for lawyers, or books on politics for beginners like How Civil Wars Start , The Color of Law , or The Flip Side of History , you’ll love Mr. Beat’s The Power of Our Supreme Court .

Genres: History, Politics, Nonfiction, Law, American History

296 pages, Paperback

Published June 20, 2023

Reviews

[Joshua Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Power of the Supreme Court" by Matt Beat is a must-read primer for all Americans. The book is neatly divided into two sections. The first half offers a thorough history of the Supreme Court, along with an insightful breakdown of its functions and roles. It's an excellent overview that demystifies the court's workings for readers of all backgrounds.

The second half presents succinct summaries of the 100 most influential Supreme Court decisions. These summaries are concise yet informative, making complex legal concepts accessible and understandable.

Overall, Matt Beat's clear and engaging writing style makes this book an invaluable resource for anyone looking to understand the pivotal role of the Supreme Court in American history and its ongoing impact on our society.

[callie]

mr. beat if you read this i want to say i love your videos and i'll be buying once it hits the shelves

[Cindy Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wandered in and out of paying attention which means I learned a little and will learn more if I listen to it again. Definitely recommend this to everyone - well written and educational.

[Kennedy Smook · Rating 3 out of 5]

fun to see the evolution of Supreme Court cases. i probably won't remember a single thing i read in this book, but it was a fun time!!

[Andres Gama · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has to be one of the best books I have ever read! Beat does an excellent job of explaining what he considers the 100 most impactful US Supreme Court rulings in American history. Any case the Supreme Court decides to hear simply involves answering one important question, “Is it constitutional?” Each ruling has set a precedent for our nation good or bad.

Here are some notable cases that stood out me in each century:

18th Century
Judiciary Act (1789)
Chisholm v. Georgia (1793)

19th Century
Fletcher v. Peck (1810)
Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)
Worcester v. Georgia (1832)
The Dred Scott Decision (1857)
The Slaughterhouse Cases (1873)
Strauder v. West Virginia (1880)
The Civil Rights Cases (1883)
Holden v. Hardy (1898)
United States v. Wong Kim Ark (1898)

20th Century
Jacobson v. Massachusetts (1905)
Near v. Minnesota (1931)
United States v. Miller (1939)
United States v. Darby Lumber Co. (1941)
West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette (1943)
Korematsu v. United States (1944)
Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)
Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
In re Gault (1967)
Loving v. Virginia (1967)
Katz v. United States (1967)
Terry v. Ohio (1968)
Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969)
The Pentagon Papers Case (1971)
Roe v. Wade (1973)
Miller v. California (1973)
United States v. Nixon (1974)
Sony Corp of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc. (1984)
Texas v. Johnson (1989)
Shaw v. Reno (1993)
United States v. Lopez (1995)

21st Century
Bush v. Gore (2000)
Lawrence v. Texas (2003)
Kelo v. City of New London (2005)
Castle Rock v. Gonzales (2005)
DC v. Heller (2008)
Citizens United v. FEC (2010)
McDonald v. Chicago (2010)
Snyder v. Phelps (2011)
Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)
Murphy v. NCAA (2018)
Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission (2018)
Carpenter v. United States (2018)
Bostock v. Clayton County (2020)
Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. (2021)
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022)

[Nisha Tirumalai · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unfortunately I couldn't get through this book- super well researched and had some great facts but didn't like how the book's format besides the introduction is just listing out important court cases and going into detail about themZ I wish it told a better story. Sort of felt like reading through a long dictionary.

[RYAN PHAM · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! It retains the tone of his Youtube videos and manages to distill the essence of each of the 100 most important Supreme Court cases into its most important issues and is able to provide context behind the socio-political context at the time of the case. I had to slow my reading speed to digest everything.

[Connor Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book does a good job explaining the influence of the Supreme Court and how it has shaped our democracy.

Because it’s going over the 100 most important cases, the structure of the book gets repetitive, but it’s still good. There are also some spacing and spelling errors in the books, but that can be fixed on a second edition.

3.5/5⭐️

[Josh Trice · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun, informative overview of 100 cases throughout the history of the Supreme Court. Mr. Beat gives helpful analysis without becoming another opinionated take. I would recommend this to anyone looking to learn a little more about America’s most famous court!

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

A nice concisely written tl;dr of landmark US Supreme Court cases

[Patricia Farley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not sure how I found this book but it was excellent.

[Daia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although slightly biased, I think this book is a must read for every American citizen. We vastly underestimate the power of the Supreme Court and how small decisions have huge impacts.

[Brian Wirsing · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Beat is an awesome educator and author. A very informative book that I'm sure will have a successor with all the rulings that Im sure are coming in the near future.

[Benjamin Lindeen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! Was written and reads like 100 of Mr. Beat’s YouTube videos sewed together with some contextual end caps on either side, which is to say great. While a medium length read, and information dense, flys by with the snappy changes in topic. Given over the course of American history in chronological order, serves as a pseudo US history for dummies a as bonus. A great showing for a first time author. Gets you up to speed well enough on the SCOTUS, without becoming boring. Would have been great to read before, but just as good after my undergraduate college level class on the court.