Any trade that crosses state lines or involves citizens from different state is considered interstate commerce. The Commerce Clause was considered an important power in the original drafting of the Constitution due to the controversies that were created in trading relationships between the states under the Articles of Confederation. As the nation has increased in size and economic activity, the application of the Commerce Clause has become increasingly more important. The landmark case of Marbury v. Madison established the power of the U.S. Supreme Court to interpret the application of the Commerce Clause. 4. What is discovery and what are the methods to obtain this information?

Discovery is the pre-trial phase in civil and criminal law where parties obtain...

Various tools of discovery are available by the parties such as interrogatories, request for admissions, request for the production of documents, and depositions. Discovery is extremely liberal and must be complied with by all participating parties to the litigation. Failure to comply can result in sanctions being applied which in the case of criminal discovery may result in a dismissal of charges against the defendant. Ordinarily, the parties comply with discovery without resorting to the use of subpoenas but the procedure is available for those parties meeting with opposition to voluntary compliance. In criminal discovery, parties are obligated to share all information in their possession.