January 31, 1801

John Marshall

John Adams issues John Marshall’s commission as Chief Justice

The commission was dated 31 January, but Marshall could not act as Chief Justice until 4 February — and he went on running the State Department after he had taken the judicial oaths.

31 January is the commission date

President John Adams issued John Marshall's commission as Chief Justice of the United States on 31 January 1801. That step completed the presidential appointment paperwork; it was not the nomination, the confirmation or the oath.

Adams had nominated Marshall on 20 January, and the Senate confirmed him by voice vote on 27 January, seven days later.

"Appointed" gets used for all four steps, which is why the date is easy to misread.

Sworn in at an unfinished Capitol

Marshall did not take the judicial oaths or begin exercising the office on 31 January. He presented the dated commission and took both required oaths on 4 February, at the Supreme Court's first sitting in Washington, in a temporary courtroom inside the still-unfinished Capitol.

The Supreme Court and the Federal Judicial Center treat 4 February — the oath date — as the beginning of his judicial service.

Two offices at once

Marshall held the judicial commission while remaining Secretary of State, and continued performing State Department duties through the end of the Adams administration.

The vacancy existed because Chief Justice Oliver Ellsworth had resigned on account of ill health. Adams's first replacement was former Chief Justice John Jay, nominated and confirmed in December 1800, who then declined.

The appointment came before the Judiciary Act of 1801, so it was not one of the new judgeships created by that later "midnight judges" statute.

Sources

Researched 24 Aug 2026 8 sources not yet audited

How this was checked

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What the sources leave uncertain

The date is secure, but “appointed” can refer to several distinct steps. Marshall was nominated on 20 January, confirmed on 27 January, commissioned on 31 January and sworn in on 4 February.
The Supreme Court and Federal Judicial Center treat 4 February—the oath date—as the beginning of Marshall’s judicial service, while 31 January is specifically the commission date.