Decision
On December 18, 1978, the high court, fully agreeing with Marshall's analysis, ruled unanimously in First National Bank's favor. The decision maintained that the 115-year-old National Bank Act takes precedence over usury statutes in individual states. Justice William Brennan wrote that the 1863 law permitted a national bank to charge interest at the rate allowed by the regulations of the state in which the lending institution is located.
Brennan rejected Marquette National's argument that just because First National was soliciting credit card customers in Minnesota, it was "located" in that state for purposes of the credit card program. "Minnesota residents were always free to visit Nebraska and receive loans in that state." It hadn't been suggested that Minnesota's laws would apply in that instance, he added. Therefore, they shouldn't be applied just because "the convenience of modern mail" allowed Minnesotans to get credit without having to visit Nebraska. He dismissed another of the plaintiffs' arguments, that the National Banking Act had also intended to preserve "competitive equality", between state and national banks by citing language from the original adoption of the statute and supporting documents to demonstrate that it was always Congress's intent to create a national banking system. The Court itself had taken notice of interstate lending as early as 1839, and the 1863 Congress, Brennan said, was equally aware of such transactions and did not wish to discourage them.
In the closing paragraph, he conceded one of the plaintiffs' arguments, that a ruling in First of Omaha's favor would make it difficult or impossible for states to enforce their anti-usury laws. But, he said, that had been the case since the National Banking Act was passed. "This impairment may in fact be accentuated by the ease with which interstate credit is available by mail through the use of modern credit cards," he allowed. "But the protection of state usury laws is an issue of legislative policy, and any plea to alter to further that end is better addressed to the wisdom of Congress than to the judgment of this Court."
On July 25, 1979, the Iowa Supreme Court overturned their decision that was made on August 30, 1978.
Read more about this topic: Marquette Nat. Bank Of Minneapolis V. First Of Omaha Service Corp.
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