Mistretta v. United States - Significance

Mistretta v. United States dealt with the separation-of-powers doctrine in the Constitution. In most of its cases involving separation of powers prior to Mistretta, the Court had tended to rule in favor of those who challenged statutes that threatened the principle of separation. This had been the case seven years before in 1982 when Northern Pipeline Co. v. Marathon Pipe Line Co. was decided and the trend was reversed. Previously the Court had struck down a 1978 law that had established a group of judges with wide-ranging authority in bankruptcy cases.