The states cannot create qualifications for prospective members of Congress that are stricter than those specified in the Constitution. This decision invalidates provisions that had imposed term limits on members of Congress in 23 states. Decided May 22, 1995 (argued November 29, 1994). Opinion of the Court: John Paul Stevens → go there Dissenting: Thomas. Applied: the Seventeenth Amendment → go there Applied: the Tenth Amendment → go there Topic: Federalism. U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton, 514 U.S. 779 (1995), is a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision in which the Court ruled that states cannot impose qualifications for prospective members of the U.S. Congress stricter than those that the Constitution specifies. The decision invalidated 23 states' Congressional term limit provisions. The parties to the case were U.S. Term Limits, a nonprofit advocacy group, and Arkansas politician Ray Thornton, among others. Wiki link