148 stitutionality of the Government’s position. Cases of libel against the Government by political adversaries were also decided by the Court. The Supreme Court dealt with such cases, laying down a moderate conservative line. The Court, however, can generally be said to have kept out of politics, probably partly due to the fact that only very few judges had had political careers prior to their appointment to the Court. The overwhelming majority of judges on the Court were recruited from the appellate courts. The Constitution of 1849 entitled the Court to try cases brought by individuals against the State. It did not, however, expressly grant the Court the power to declare a statute unconstitutional. The Court did not subject a statute to judicial reviewof constitutionality until the 1920’s, when it heard a series of cases concerning agrarian reforms, although it did not in fact declare any of the affected statutes unconstitutional. The Court then wished to avoid conflict with the legislature. This strong desire to avoid such conflict is still present in the Court today.
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