Court Cases

Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831)

This case arose from the attempt of the state of Georgia to gain jurisdiction over lands which were held by Cherokee Indians under a treaty with the United States .  The US Supreme Court ruled that the Georgia had no jurisdiction to hear a case brought by the Cherokee Indian Tribe since it was a "domestic dependent nation" with a right to the land unless they voluntarily gave it up to the United States . 

Worcester v. Georgia (1832)

The US Supreme Court ruled that the laws of the state of Georgia did not apply to the Cherokee nation since it was a distinct political community.  The court added that the citizens of Georgia had no right to enter the Cherokee nation without the consent of the tribe or as permitted by treaties or acts of Congress. 

Both the state of Georgia and President Andrew Jackson of the United States refused to pay attention to this Supreme Court decision.  Within a handful of years, the Cherokees had been forced off their lands and made to move west to a reservation in Oklahoma .