Civil Contempt in Bankruptcy: Exploring the Limits of the Bankruptcy Courts’ Subject Matter Jurisdiction
Introduction
Many of us are familiar with the famous, albeit purportedly apocryphal, quote by former president Andrew Jackson, who, upon hearing of the Court’s decision in Worcester v. Georgia, 31 U.S. 515 (1832), is supposed to have famously declared of Chief Justice John Marshall: “John Marshall has made his decision; now let him enforce it!” See, e.g., Edwin A. Miles, After John Marshall’s Decision: Worcester v. Georgia and the Nullification Crisis, 39 J. Southern Hist. 519, 519 (1973). But See Paul F. Boller, Jr. & John George, They Never Said It: A Book of Fake Quotes, Misquotes, & Misleading Attributions 53 (1989).
Regardless of whether these words were ever uttered, the sentiment is clear: absent cooperation from the coordinate branches of the federal government, even the U.S. Supreme Court would be forced to rely on its contempt powers to enforce its rulings. What is perhaps less well-known about Andrew Jackson is that he was, at one time, on the receiving end of a federal court’s civil contempt power, a mark on his record he regretted until his dying days. Eberhard P. Deutsch, The United States Versus Major General Andrew Jackson, 46 A.B.A. J. 966, 971–72 (1960).