Continental Illinois National Bank and Trust Co. v. Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad Co., , was a United States Supreme Court case in which the court held that Congress may use its bankruptcy power to nullify obligations from private contracts that existed before the enaction of the bankruptcy legislation..
Significance This case stands for the proposition that Congress must have an enumerated power at its disposal to enact legislation. Congress does not have an enumerated power that would allow it to destroy contracts generally. However, according to the court in this case, Congress's powers to enact "uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United States" is broad enough to encompass that in the bankruptcy context specifically.
See also Calder v. Bull Legal Tender Cases
References
External links