In United States V. The Amistad

United States v. Schooner Amistad, 40 U.S. 518, was a United States Supreme Court case resulting from the rebellion of Africans on board the Spanish schooner La Amistad in 1839. It was an unusual freedom suit that involved international issues and parties, as well as United States law.

John Quincy Adams for the Defense, defended the Africans in front of the Supreme Court and helped convince a southern-dominated court in March 1841 to release the enslaved people in the Amistad case. John Quincy Adams was 73 years old and a member of the House of Representatives at the time of the trail.