Kidd v. Pearson (1850)
- Docket
- 779
- Decided
- 1850-1900-
Summary
Question: Was the state law in conflict with the power of Congress to regulate interstate commerce? Conclusion: There is no conflict and the state law is valid. The Court erected a distinction between manufacture and commerce. The state law regulated manufacturing only. The justices feared that a broad view of commerce that would embrace manufacturing would also embrace the power to regulate "every branch of human industry." The distinction proved untenable but it took nearly a half-century to erase its pernicious consequences.