The Supreme Court in the Early Republic: The Chief Justiceships of John Jay and Oliver Ellsworth

William R. Casto sheds a new light on America’s federal judiciary and the changing legal landscape with his detailed examination of the Supreme Court’s formative years. In a study that spans the period from the Court’s tentative beginnings through the appointment of its third chief justice, Casto reveals a judicial body quite different in orientation and philosophy from the current Supreme Court and one with a legacy of enduring significance for the U.S. legal system.rimes, the drafting of the Judiciary Act of 1789, and the adoption of judicial review.