Lochner v. New York
Okay kiddo, let's talk about a case called "Lochner v. New York." This was a really important case that happened a long time ago, in 1905. It was about a guy named Joseph Lochner, who owned a bakery in New York.
In those days, there were laws (called "labor laws") that said how long people could work each day. The idea was to protect workers from being overworked and to make sure they had time to rest and take care of themselves. But Joseph Lochner didn't like these laws. He wanted to be able to decide for himself how long his workers could work, and he thought the government was getting in the way.
So, he ignored the labor laws and made his workers work longer hours than they were supposed to. The government didn't like this, so they took him to court. The case ended up going all the way to the Supreme Court of the United States, which is the highest court in the land.
Now, this is where things get a little tricky, so bear with me. The Supreme Court had to decide whether the labor laws were okay or not. There were two sides to the argument. On one side, people said that the laws were important to protect workers and keep them healthy. On the other side, people said that the laws were getting in the way of business and taking away people's freedom.
In the end, the Supreme Court decided that the labor laws were NOT okay. They said that the government didn't have the right to tell Joseph Lochner how many hours his workers could work. The Court said that this was a violation of his "freedom of contract," which means that people should be able to make their own deals and agreements without the government getting in the way.
Now, some people were happy about this decision because they thought it meant that businesses should be able to do whatever they want. But other people were upset because they thought it meant that workers were not being protected enough.
So, in summary, Lochner v. New York was a court case about whether the government could make laws to protect workers from being overworked. The Supreme Court decided that the government couldn't do this because it would violate people's freedom. But this decision was controversial because it meant that workers might not be as well-protected as they should be.
In those days, there were laws (called "labor laws") that said how long people could work each day. The idea was to protect workers from being overworked and to make sure they had time to rest and take care of themselves. But Joseph Lochner didn't like these laws. He wanted to be able to decide for himself how long his workers could work, and he thought the government was getting in the way.
So, he ignored the labor laws and made his workers work longer hours than they were supposed to. The government didn't like this, so they took him to court. The case ended up going all the way to the Supreme Court of the United States, which is the highest court in the land.
Now, this is where things get a little tricky, so bear with me. The Supreme Court had to decide whether the labor laws were okay or not. There were two sides to the argument. On one side, people said that the laws were important to protect workers and keep them healthy. On the other side, people said that the laws were getting in the way of business and taking away people's freedom.
In the end, the Supreme Court decided that the labor laws were NOT okay. They said that the government didn't have the right to tell Joseph Lochner how many hours his workers could work. The Court said that this was a violation of his "freedom of contract," which means that people should be able to make their own deals and agreements without the government getting in the way.
Now, some people were happy about this decision because they thought it meant that businesses should be able to do whatever they want. But other people were upset because they thought it meant that workers were not being protected enough.
So, in summary, Lochner v. New York was a court case about whether the government could make laws to protect workers from being overworked. The Supreme Court decided that the government couldn't do this because it would violate people's freedom. But this decision was controversial because it meant that workers might not be as well-protected as they should be.