Also known as:laws of marque · law of marque and reprisal · letters of marque · marque and reprisal
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The constitutional authority vested in Congress to grant letters of marque and reprisal that authorize private vessels to capture enemy property at sea.
Sources & Authorities
How it applies
Common Examples
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Congress Authorizes Private Reprisal
After a foreign power seizes American merchant vessels without compensation, Congress passes legislation under its Article I powers directing the president to issue letters of marque to qualified ship owners. Luis Lopez receives such a letter and outfits his vessel to intercept the foreign ships. Under the law of marque he boards the targeted vessels in international waters and removes cargo equal in value to the losses his company sustained. The seized goods are then condemned through federal prize proceedings and sold to satisfy the original wrong.
State Attempt at Reprisal Blocked
A coastal state legislature, angered by repeated foreign fishing incursions, enacts a statute purporting to grant letters of marque to local vessel owners. Lucia Lopez, a state-licensed captain, prepares to seize foreign trawlers under the new state law. Federal authorities intervene and declare the state grants invalid. The law of marque cannot be invoked because only Congress possesses the constitutional authority to authorize such reprisals.
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Dictionaries
Prize Proceedings After Capture
During declared hostilities Congress issues letters of marque to several merchant captains including Lars Lindstrom. Lindstrom captures an enemy cargo ship carrying contraband. He brings the vessel into a federal port where the district court adjudicates the prize claim. The law of marque supplies the legal basis for the capture and the subsequent condemnation and sale of the cargo.
Brown v. United States12 U.S. 110 (1814)
Executive Implementation of Marque Authority
Congress delegates to the president the power to issue letters of marque against specified adversaries. Lorenzo Lugo applies for and receives a commission authorizing him to arm his ship and seize enemy property at sea. The law of marque governs the scope of permissible captures and the requirement that all prizes be submitted to federal courts for adjudication.
Myers v. United States272 U.S. 52 (1926)
Limits on State Interference
A state port authority attempts to detain a federally commissioned privateer vessel and claim a share of its prize cargo. The vessel owner, Lamar Lewis, asserts that the state action violates the federal grant of marque authority. The law of marque operates exclusively under federal power and preempts any state effort to regulate or share in the reprisal proceeds.
Barron v. Baltimore32 U.S. (7 Pet.) 243 (1833)
Judicial Review of Marque Captures
A privateer commissioned under a congressional letter of marque seizes property belonging to a neutral citizen during wartime. The owner petitions for release through habeas corpus proceedings. The law of marque requires that captures conform to the limits stated in the commission and to the rules of international law incorporated by Congress.
Ex parte Milligan71 U.S. 2 (1866)
Common questions
Frequently Asked
3
Who possesses authority to issue letters of marque under the Constitution?+
Article I Section 8 grants Congress the power to declare war and issue letters of marque and reprisal. Article I Section 10 expressly forbids any state from granting such letters. The constitutional allocation therefore places exclusive authority in the federal legislature.
How does the law of marque differ from piracy?+
The law of marque authorizes private persons to seize enemy property pursuant to a governmental commission and subjects the prizes to judicial condemnation. Piracy consists of unauthorized depredations on the high seas without any sovereign sanction. A valid letter of marque therefore converts what would otherwise be piracy into lawful reprisal.
What remedies does the law of marque provide to a wronged party?+
It permits the injured party to seize goods belonging to the wrongdoer that are located within the claimant's precinct and to apply those goods toward satisfaction of the underlying claim. The seizure must be conducted under a valid governmental commission and is subject to subsequent judicial review.
272 U.S. 52 (1926)Constitutional Law
…in the making of treaties. A third remains to be mentioned; the right of the legislature to declare war and grant letters of marque and reprisal.' "With these exceptions, the executive power of the United States is completely lodged in the President. This mode of construing the Constitution has indeed been recognized by Congress in…