FEBRUARY 7 1870 – HEPBURN V GRISWOLD US SUPREME COURT DECISION


1870 – HEPBURN V GRISWOLD US SUPREME COURT DECISION
The Court declared that certain parts of the passed Congressional Legal Tender acts in the 1860’s were unconstitutional. The Legal Tender acts authorized the government to issue paper money, “Greenbacks”, and recognized it as legal to meet financial obligations. The Court concluded, however, that a party to a contract could not use paper money as payment for a debt if the contract stipulated gold or silver as payment. The Court explained how the US Congress possessed the power to coin money, but that that power was different than the power to make paper money legal.