Made in the USA Foundation v. US case brief

Made in the USA Foundation v. US, 242 F.3d 1300 (11th Cir. 2001)

• plaintiffs challenged a trade agreement made by the President with the authorization of Congress (NAFTA Implementation Act) (we’re in Jackson category 1)
• plaintiffs allege that this has to be concluded as an Article II treaty, and is not legitimate in its current form
• the court rules that the trade agreement was legitimate:
• Constitution textually commits the commerce power to Congress, and the NAFTA Implementation Act deals with commerce
• Further, the president, in negotiating the trade agreement, was acting pursuant to his constitutional powers to conduct the Nations’ foreign affairs AND pursuant to a grant of authority from Congress (Justice Jackson’s framework: we have a presumption of validity because President acts within his own Constitutional powers and with the authority of Congress)