United States v. Gibbons is a United States Supreme Court case that dealt with the scope of Congress’ power to regulate interstate commerce. The case involved a dispute between the United States and Gibbons, a steamboat operator, over the legality of a steamboat service between New York and New Jersey. The United States argued that the service was subject to the Commerce Clause of the Constitution, which gives Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce. Gibbons argued that the service was not subject to the Commerce Clause because it was a purely intrastate service. The Supreme Court held that Congress had the power to regulate the steamboat service under the Commerce Clause. The Court reasoned that the service was part of a larger interstate commerce system and that Congress had the power to regulate it. The Court also held that the Commerce Clause gave Congress the power to regulate any activity that had a substantial effect on interstate commerce. This ruling established the principle that Congress has broad authority to regulate interstate commerce.

In United States v. Gibbons, the Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether Congress had the power to regulate commerce between states under its constitutional authority. The majority opinion held that Congress did have such power and could pass laws regulating interstate commerce. However, Justice Field dissented from this decision and argued that while Congress does have some powers over interstate commerce, it is limited by state law when those laws are not in conflict with federal statutes or treaties. He further argued that if a state has already passed legislation on an issue related to interstate commerce then any additional regulation by Congress would be unconstitutional as it would violate the Tenth Amendment's protection of states' rights against interference from the federal government.