List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 21

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This is a list of cases reported in volume 21 (8 Wheat.) of United States Reports, decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1823.

In 1874, the U. S. government created the United States Reports, and retroactively numbered older privately published case reports as part of the new series. As a result, cases appearing in volumes 1–90 of U. S. Reports have dual citation forms; one for the volume number of U. S. Reports, and one for the volume number of the reports named for the relevant reporter of decisions (these are called "nominative reports").

Starting with the 14th volume of U. S. Reports, the Reporter of Decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States was Henry Wheaton. Wheaton was Reporter of Decisions from 1816 to 1827, covering volumes 14 through 25 of United States Reports which correspond to volumes 1 through 12 of his Wheaton's Reports. As such, the dual form of citation to, for example, Sexton v. Wheaton is 21 U. S. (8 Wheat.) 229 (1823).

Johnson's Lessee v. McIntosh, 21 U. S. (8 Wheat.) 543 (1823), is a landmark decision of the U. S. Supreme Court which held private citizens could not purchase lands from Native Americans. The litigation began when the successor in interest to a private purchase from the Piankeshaw attempted to maintain an action of ejectment against the holder of a federal land patent. The case is one of the most influential decisions of the Marshall Court. Marshall's opinion lays down the foundations of the doctrine of aboriginal title in the United States, and the related doctrine of discovery. What the opinion holds as to aboriginal title is that it is inalienable, a principle that remains well established law in nearly all common law jurisdictions.

Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 the federal court structure at the time comprised District Courts, which had general trial jurisdiction; Circuit Courts, which had mixed trial and appellate (from the US District Courts) jurisdiction; and the United States Supreme Court, which had appellate jurisdiction over the federal District and Circuit courts—and for certain issues over state courts. The Supreme Court also had limited original jurisdiction (i. e., in which cases could be filed directly with the Supreme Court without first having been heard by a lower federal or state court). There were one or more federal District Courts and/or Circuit Courts in each state, territory, or other geographical region. Bluebook citation style is used for case names, citations, and jurisdictions. "C. C. D." = United States Circuit Court for the District of . e. g.,"C. C. D. N. J." = United States Circuit Court for the District of New Jersey
"D." = United States District Court for the District of . e. g.,"D. Mass." = United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
"E." = Eastern; "M." = Middle; "N." = Northern; "S." = Southern; "W." = Western
e. g.,"C. C. S. D. N. Y." = United States Circuit Court for the Southern District of New York
e. g.,"M. D. Ala." = United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama
"Ct. Cl." = United States Court of Claims
The abbreviation of a state's name alone indicates the highest appellate court in that state's judiciary at the time. e. g.,"Pa." = Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
e. g.,"Me." = Supreme Judicial Court of Maine

Case Name Page and year Opinion of the Court Concurring opinion(s) Dissenting opinion(s) Lower court Disposition Green v. Biddle 1 (1823) Washington Johnson none C. C. D. Ky. certification La Nereyda 108 (1823) Story none none C. C. D. Md. reversed Hunt v. Rousmanier's Administrators 174 (1823) Marshall none none C. C. D. R. I. reversed Goldsborough v. Orr 217 (1823) Story none none C. C. D. C. affirmed Sexton v. Wheaton 229 (1823) Marshall none none C. C. D. C. affirmed United States v. Wilson 253 (1823) per curiam none none C. C. S. D. N. Y. certification Greeley v. United States 257 (1823) per curiam none none C. C. D. Me. certification The Experiment 261 (1823) Story none none C. C. D. Mass. affirmed Spring v. South Carolina Insurance Company 268 (1823) Livingston none none C. C. D. S. C. reversed Hughes v. Union Insurance Company 294 (1823) Johnson none none C. C. D. Md. reversed Buel v. Van Ness 312 (1823) Johnson none none Vt. reversed Nicholls v. Webb 326 (1823) Story none none D. La. affirmed Fleckner v. Second Bank of the United States 338 (1823) Story none none D. La. affirmed Nicholas v. Anderson 365 (1823) Story none none C. C. D. Ky. affirmed The Pitt 371 (1823) Johnson none none C. C. D. Del. affirmed The Mary Ann Plumer 380 (1823) Marshall none none D. La. reversed The Sarah Hazard 391 (1823) Marshall none none D. La. reversed The Frances 398 (1823) Duvall none none D. La. reversed The Luminary L'Amoureaux 407 (1823) Story none Johnson D. La. affirmed Wallace v. Wormley 421 (1823) Story Johnson none C. C. D. Va. affirmed United Society Partners in the Gospel v. Town of New Haven 464 (1823) Washington none none C. C. D. Vt. certification Daly's Lessee v. James 495 (1823) Washington Johnson none C. C. D. Pa. affirmed Johnson's Lessee v. McIntosh 543 (1823) Marshall none none D. Ill. affirmed Gracie v. Palmer 605 (1823) Johnson none none C. C. E. D. Pa. reversed Childress v. Emory 642 (1823) Story none none C. C. D. W. Tenn. affirmed Siglar v. Haywood 675 (1823) Marshall none none C. C. D. E. Tenn. reversed City of Washington v. Francis 681 (1823) Johnson none none C. C. D. C. affirmed Sneed v. Wister 690 (1823) Washington none none C. C. D. Ky. affirmed Hugh v. Higgs 697 (1823) Marshall none none C. C. D. C. reversed Gracie v. Palmer 699 (1823) Marshall none none C. C. E. D. Pa. dismissal denied