February
in Supreme Court History
February 1
Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. 137 (decided February 1, 1803): Marshall rules that the Court has no original jurisdiction to enforce a judicial appointment which Marshall (as Secretary of State) failed to get delivered. Marshall was also already Chief Justice at the time. He should have, of course, recused himself. This case is often cited as the precedent for judicial review, but that part of the opinion is dicta, as Marshall later pointed out (Cohens v. Virginia, 1821). Among the Founding Fathers judicial review already went without saying, as can be seen in the Washington Administration’s 1793 consultation to the Court, raised as they all were in the British tradition (see “The British Origin of Judicial Review of Legislation”, 93 Univ. Pa. L. Rev. 1 (1944))
Chisholm v. Georgia, 2 U.S. 419 (decided February 1, 1793): citizen of another state can sue a state in federal court under original jurisdiction (Georgia had bought supplies from South Carolina citizen but never paid him); this holding was a straightforward reading of Article III (it was a suit between a State and a citizen of another State; also of the Court’s original jurisdiction, because a State was a party) but, as my Con Law professor put it, “the whole country went nuts” when they realized how far federal court power extended and it was quickly abrogated by the Eleventh Amendment
Murray v. The Schooner Charming Betsy, 6 U.S. 64 (decided February 1, 1804): Danish-flagged vessel owned by French citizen en route to Danish island should not have been seized under the Non-Intercourse Act of 1800 (this was the “Quasi-War” with France) (it also was not a war vessel, having only one musket, a few balls, and a few ounces of powder)
Scott v. London, 7 U.S. 324 (decided February 1, 1806): slave (named in the caption as “Negro London”) not entitled to freedom even though brought into state (Virginia) by one falsely claiming to be his owner and who allowed the 60 day certification period to expire, and it wasn’t until 11 months later his real owner (from Maryland) came to get him
Rose v. Himely, 8 U.S. 241 (decided February 1, 1808): French privateer could not seize American vessel outside territorial waters (more than three leagues off Santo Domingo, at the time in rebellion against Napoleon) (quickly overruled by Hudson v. Guestier, 1810, for reasons not explained)
Waters-Price Oil Co. v. Deselms, 212 U.S. 159 (decided February 1, 1909): Court affirms Territory of Oklahoma court verdict in favor of father whose children were killed in coal oil explosion; oil contained gasoline in violation of Territory statute; possible Equal Protection violation because statute punishes different people differently but that can be severed from the rest of the statute
February 2
Dartmouth College v. Woodward, 17 U.S. 518 (decided February 2, 1819): state attempt to change existing charter of college to turn it into a public institution violated Contracts Clause; corporate entities are entitled to Clause protection
Ross v. Bernhard, 396 U.S. 531 (decided February 2, 1970): I did my law review article on the Seventh Amendment, which guarantees the right to a jury trial in a civil case in actions at law (but not equity). Stupidly, one has to look at what the law vs. equity distinction was in 1791 (when the Bill of Rights went into effect) to see whether there is a right to a jury trial today. Here, the Court says a stockholder’s derivative suit (traditionally equity) is an action at law because its allegation of waste by the directors would be an action at law if brought by the corporation itself against the directors. (?) Footnote 4, adding to the analysis “the practical abilities and limitations of juries”, hasn’t gotten any traction; courts continue to allow juries to hear complicated “actions at law” they don’t understand. (Talking to jurors after verdict in cases I’ve tried, I see that sometimes they don’t even understand simple cases, and fixate on irrelevant trivia.)
Brock v. North Carolina, 344 U.S. 424 (decided February 2, 1953): after mistrial because of refusal of two (prosecution) witnesses to testify, second trial on same offense did not violate Double Jeopardy (overruled by Benton v. Maryland, 1969)
Johnson v. United States, 333 U.S. 10 (decided February 2, 1948): Officer smelled opium smoke, knocked, she opened the door, and they arrested her. The Court holds that a warrant (which they point out would have been granted) was required. (There’s a “plain view” doctrine, but apparently no “plain smell” doctrine.)
Louisiana v. Mississippi, 282 U.S. 458 (decided February 2, 1931): original jurisdiction case dealing with the Mississippi River changing course over the years; once again we learn that “accretion” (gradual erosion or addition) can change a boundary, but “avulsion” (land looped by river which then gets cut off from the mainland) does not. I learned another word, “chute”, which is the new stream that cuts off the loop and straightens the course of the river, eventually becoming the main course.
Connecticut Mutual Life Ins. Co. v. Hillmon, 188 U.S. 208 (decided February 2, 1903): The last gasp of this famous case which dragged on for 24 years, where here the Court sends the case back for a seventh trial, vacating a verdict for Sallie Hillmon based on an improperly introduced affidavit. She had tried to collect on a life insurance policy by proving that her husband had died by accidental gunshot at Crooked Creek, Kansas in 1879. Was the deceased John Hillmon or one Fred Walters? The earlier Court decision, from 1892, established the hearsay exception for future intention (admitting into evidence a letter written at Wichita from Walters to his financeé stating that he intended to go to Colorado with his new buddy Hillmon; this might show that it was really Walters who was shot because Crooked Creek was along the way and Walters was never heard from again). My Evidence professor did his usual excellent job recounting this story, ending with, “To this day, nobody knows who was shot at Crooked Creek”, but Wikipedia reports on a 2006 exhumation which concluded that it probably was indeed Hillmon. Anyway, Sallie was paid off before this 1903 decision and instead of going through with a seventh trial the remaining insurers settled with each other.
February 3
Germany v. Philipp, 592 U.S. 518 (decided February 3, 2021): Foreign Sovereignty Immunities Act barred suit in U.S. courts by Holocaust survivors to recover value of property they were forced to sell at below market value to agents of Goering; exception for “property taken in violation of international law” applied to property taken by one country from another, not from individuals
Marshall v. Barlow’s, Inc., 429 U.S. 1347 (decided February 3, 1977): OSHA needs a warrant to inspect a workplace (this was a random search of an electrical/plumbing business and the owner did not consent)
United States v. Gilliland, 312 U.S. 86 (decided February 3, 1941): “Hot Oil” Act, which criminalized falsifying records so as to transfer amounts of petroleum in excess of regulations, applied to transfers between private parties, not just to and from Government
Gooch v. United States, 297 U.S. 124 (decided February 3, 1936): Federal Kidnapping Act applied to abductions to prevent arrest (defendants overwhelmed police officers in Texas and dumped them in Oklahoma); monetary gain incentive not required
United States v. California, 297 U.S. 175 (decided February 3, 1936): state-owned railroad was indirectly involved in interstate commerce and therefore subject to common carrier regulations and fines
February 4
Dice v. Akron, Canton & Youngstown R.R. Co., 342 U.S. 359 (decided February 4, 1952): release of personal injury defendant sued under Federal Employers’ Liability Act is determined by federal, not state, law and issue of whether release was obtained by fraud is to be tried by a jury
Martino v. Michigan Window Cleaning Co., 327 U.S. 173 (decided February 4, 1946): can sue for inadequate overtime under Fair Labor Standards Act even though union contract allowed it (superseded by statute, see 186 Wash. 2d 357)
Canizio v. People, 327 U.S. 82 (decided February 4, 1946): 19-year-old denied right to counsel after arrest could not show prejudice because represented by counsel at pleading stage and at trial (presumably overruled by later Court decisions)
Estep v. United States, 327 U.S. 114 (decided February 4, 1946): defendants prosecuted for refusing induction into armed services; Congress can provide that findings of local draft boards are final and cannot be judicially reviewed but court can review argument that board acted outside jurisdiction
Jurney v. MacCracken, 294 U.S. 125 (decided February 4, 1935): Congress can punish for contempt even though subpoenaed records had been destroyed, making subpoena moot (witness was suspected of corruption in awarding air mail contracts and Congress had him imprisoned for ten days)
February 5
Queen v. Hepburn, 11 U.S. 290 (decided February 5, 1813): Marshall holds that while hearsay can support a claim to property (for example as to boundaries) it can’t as to freedom; statements of people who were now dead that ancestor of mother and child petitioning for their freedom came from England and not Africa were properly excluded; Duvall, in his only written dissent in 24 years on the Court, points out that hearsay on this issue is allowed in his home state of Maryland and states: “The reason for admitting hearsay evidence upon a question of freedom is much stronger than in cases of pedigree or in controversies relative to the boundaries of land. It will be universally admitted that the right to freedom is more important than the right of property. And people of color from their helpless condition under the uncontrolled authority of a master, are entitled to all reasonable protection.” Ironically Duvall himself owned slaves, though he had made his reputation winning slaves their freedom. Five of the seven Justices were slave owners, which was the typical situation pre-Civil War.
New Jersey v. Delaware, 291 U.S. 361 (decided February 5, 1934): an original jurisdiction case involving the “twelve-mile circle” on the north end of Delaware, centered on the North Castle courthouse; the Court approves special master report that Delaware owns the Delaware River bed within the circle (one sees on Google Maps that the boundary hugs the New Jersey shore); as is typical in boundary cases, the report has a detailed history of the dispute, going back to Charles II’s grant to William Penn in 1681
People v. Compagnie Generale Transatlantique, 107 U.S. 59 (decided February 5, 1883): New York’s $1 tax on people stepping off the boat is a prohibited regulation of foreign commerce (the “Dormant Foreign Commerce Clause”); New York argues that this is a tax on inspection of imports (to weed out the infected and the infirm) as is allowed by art. I, §10, cl. 2, but the Court holds that free persons can’t be “imported”, and the reference to “importation” of “persons” (art. I, §9) referred only to “persons of the African race”
Republic of Mexico v. Hoffman, 324 U.S. 30 (decided February 5, 1945): Mexico, which owned vessel which caused damage to American fishing vessel, did not have immunity from suit where it did not have possession of the vessel; Secretary of State could certify such immunity but had not done so
Pacific Telephone & Telegraph Co. v. City of Seattle, 291 U.S. 300 (decided February 5, 1934): city ordinance imposing tax based on telephone company’s gross income in the city not impermissibly vague when exact amounts are computed by city official and not due until then
O’Gorman & Young, Inc. v. Hartford Fire Ins. Co., 282 U.S. 251 (decided January 5, 1931): upholding New Jersey statute requiring that insurance agents be not paid above prevailing rates, as valid use of police power (“The business of insurance is so far affected with a public interest that the state may regulate the rates”); 5 – 4 decision, with the “Four Horsemen” dissenting (though they weren’t called that yet)
February 6
District of Columbia v. Gallaher, 124 U.S. 505 (decided February 6, 1888): District of Columbia is bound by post-contract modifications to sewer project (including increased payment) agreed to by predecessor body which was then legislated out of existence (this was the Board of Public Works, which according to Wikipedia spent D.C. almost into bankruptcy; Congress abolished it in 1874) (project turned the open-sewer Tiber Creek into an underground river, like the River Fleet in London; one of the buildings built over it is the IRS headquarters)
Rocco v. Lehigh Valley R.R. Co., 288 U.S. 275 (decided February 6, 1933): track inspector killed by train collision on blind curve; case could go to jury even though he broke rule about checking ahead
Regents of University of Georgia v. Carroll, 338 U.S. 586 (decided February 6, 1950): FCC can’t force applicant to divest as condition for granting radio license; it can only grant or deny
United States v. Alpers, 338 U.S. 680 (decided February 6, 1950): obscenity statute as to visual materials includes obscene phonograph records (despite rule of “ejusdem generis”) (the government tried to argue in the Circuit Court that statute could not refer to just “visual” material because it would include Braille, but the court couldn’t imagine obscene material in Braille — “the probability of finding the evil designed to be suppressed in the Braille system of communication is so extremely remote”) (unfortunately I couldn’t find the “dirty record” at issue; BTW, my nominee for best obscene track is “Come with Me” by Rare Earth; worst is “Kiss Kiss Kiss” by Yoko Ono)
Fayolle v. Texas Pacific Ry. Co., 124 U.S. 519 (decided February 6, 1888): appeal dismissed because lower court clerk said he would docket the record in time but failed to do so!
Tee-Hit-Ton Indians v. United States, 348 U.S. 272 (decided February 7, 1955): Alaskan tribe could not recover from United States value of trees taken from their land because they were “nomadic” and Congress had not recognized their ownership of that land
Hepburn v. Griswold, 75 U.S. 603 (decided February 7, 1870): defendant could not pay off promissory note with new paper money created by Congress in Civil War emergency (previously all money was in coin); Due Process violation by Congress in declaring new money good for payment of existing debts (quickly overruled by Legal Tender Cases, 1871)
Ott v. Mississippi Valley Barge Lins Co., 336 U.S. 169 (decided February 7, 1949): not a violation of the Dormant Commerce Clause for Louisiana to tax barges by miles in Lousiana waters in proportion to miles of entire lines (some of which extended as far as the Ohio River)
Fisher v. Pace, 336 U.S. 155 (decided February 7, 1949): attorney (in trial on extent of injury for worker’s compensation) wouldn’t shut up after judge kept ruling his argument (as to weekly dollar amounts) irrelevant; Court lets Texas court contempt order stand, pointing out that attorney’s remedy was putting in exceptions for appeal (the opinion contains parts of the trial transcript which sound like Hollywood’s idea of a lawyer, but real life’s idea of a judge)
The L.P. Dayton, 120 U.S. 337 (decided February 7, 1887): If a tugboat collides with another tugged vessel, does the damaged tug sue the other vessel, the other tugboat, or its own vessel? It depends on the facts, and the Court here denies a motion on the pleadings. We also learn that if two ships heading the same direction are in danger of collision, the ship on the left has the duty to turn aside. (You’d think both would.)
February 8
Irvine v. California, 347 U.S. 128 (decided February 8, 1953): state (though not federal goverment) can use illegal means to obtain evidence; defendant still has remedy of suing officers under 42 U.S.C. §1983 (police had locksmith make extra key for door, installed hidden microphone, ran wire through roof, and recorded conversations as to gambling) (though never explicitly overruled this case can’t still be good law)
Partmar Corp. v. Paramount Pictures Theatres Corp., 347 U.S. 89 (decided February 8, 1954): Attorney General wins Sherman Act antitrust case against distributor/theater owner/franchisor (Paramount). Paramount sues the theater operator/tenant/franchisee (Partmar) to void the lease due to illegality and to evict. Partmar counterclaims for conspiracy in violation of antitrust laws. Then the AG’s victory gets overturned on appeal, 334 U.S. 131, the Court holding that the franchise agreement was not per se illegal. So in arguing for eviction Paramount now has to argue that its conduct, notwithstanding the reversal, still violated antitrust, and Partmar argues that even if no antitrust violation there was still a conspiracy in intrastate commerce (outside the scope of the Sherman Act) and that no attempt to disprove conspiracy was made in the AG suit. Still with me? The trial court holds both that there was no reason to terminate the lease and also, as a matter of law, no conspiracy. Partmar appeals as to the dismissal of the counterclaims without a trial; it still wanted disgorgement of excessive rents, etc. The Court here holds that the finding as to the lease being legal (which was not appealed) necessarily included a finding of no conspiracy, and therefore that the counterclaims are precluded. But as this article points out, it’s not clear that the elements of the counterclaims had been fully and fairly litigated. “Collateral Estoppel and the Right to Appeal”, 7 Stanford L. Rev. 114 - 120 (1954).
C.J. Hendry Co. v. Moore, 318 U.S. 133 (decided February 8, 1943): California courts could affirm seizure of “purse net” (absurdly large net which was nuisance to other fishers) in navigable waters; did not fall within federal courts’ exclusive admiralty jurisdiction because seizure is a common law remedy (preserved by the Jones Act “saving to suitors” clause, 28 U.S.C. §1333)
Williams v. Peyton’s Lessee, 17 U.S. 77 (decided February 8, 1819): invalidating tax sale of property because purchaser could not show that it had been properly advertised
Owens v. Hanney, 13 U.S. 180 (decided February 8, 1815): breakout of war does not invalidate judgment citizen of enemy has already obtained against a United States citizen
February 9
United States v. Lane Motor Co., 344 U.S. 630 (decided February 9, 1953): truck used solely to commute to illegal distillery is not “property intended for use in violating alcohol tax laws” and hence can’t be seized and forfeited by the IRS
Musser v. Utah, 333 U.S. 95 (decided February 9, 1948): Utah statute prohibited conduct “injurious to public morals”. Appeal from conviction for counseling people to enter into polygamous relationships (this is Utah). The Court notes that the statute is vague but in context of other Utah statutes refers matter back to Utah Supreme Court. Dissent by Rutledge notes First Amendment concerns. The Utah Supreme Court agreed that it was vague under the Fourteenth Amendment and vacated the conviction, 118 Utah 537. But! the defendant, Joseph White Musser, was an out-and-out polygamist who published a magazine called “Truth”. Shown the magazine, Rulon Jeffs joined the cult. At age 85 he coerced Rebecca Wall, age 19, to be his 19th wife. She eventually broke free and publicized her plight. She married Jeffs’s grandson Ben Musser, who one assumes was related somehow to the defendant in this case; their family tree was more like a suffocating tangle of mangroves.
CBS, Inc. v. Davis, 510 U.S. 1315 (decided February 9, 1994): Meat packing employee agreed to wear hidden camera. CBS was about to broadcast an exposé. Alleging trespass and breach of duty by employee, company (Federal Beef Processors) sued to stop broadcast. The Court here dissolves injunction against broadcast, citing First Amendment and previous law on prior restraint. (The exposé, a 2-minute segment of the show “48 Hours”, aired on April 21, 1994. Not known if it included an interview with Nathan Thurm, Federal Beef’s attorney.)
Kwong Hai Chew v. Colding, 344 U.S. 590 (decided February 9, 1953): can’t deny without a hearing re-entry of permanent resident alien member of United States merchant sailing on United States registered vessel; resident aliens are entitled to due process (not shown why they wanted to exclude him; one has to go to the District Court opinion which says only that it was on the basis of “information of a confidential nature”; however years later documents obtained via FOIA show that he was active in Chinese politics and (impermissibly?) critical of our ally Taiwan, see https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=462500; they also show that this litigation dragged on to 1967 when he was finally naturalized)
Lutwak v. United States, 344 U.S. 604 (decided February 9, 1953): conviction for conspiracy to misuse War Brides Act (defendants arranged veterans to get married in Paris just so that wives could enter the U.S.) upheld; last date of conspiracy was date last bride entered the U.S. and later declaration against co-conspirators improperly admitted was harmless error (“this record fairly shrieks the guilt of the parties . . . a defendant is entitled to a fair trial but not a perfect one”)
February 10
Everson v. Board of Education, 330 U.S. 1 (decided February 10, 1947): upholds against Establishment Clause and Due Process attack statute allowing reimbursement of parents for costs of busing to both public and Catholic schools (if you wonder why “bused” and “busing” don’t have double s’s, remember that there is a word “buss” which means to kiss — in my view any racial segregation situation would have been improved by replacing “busing” with “bussing”)
Borden’s Farm Products v. Ten Eyck, 297 U.S. 251 (decided February 10, 1936): Not denial of Equal Protection for New York to apply minimum milk price rule only to dealers having “a well advertised trade name”. The dissent, by the “Four Horsemen”, seems convincing: “Here appellant differs from favored dealers only in that it possesses a well-advertised brand, while they do not. And solely because of that fact, the Legislature undertook to handicap it and thus enable others profitably to share the trade. There is no question of unfair trade practices or monopoly. By fair advertisement and commendable service, appellant acquired the public’s good will. The purpose is to deprive it of the right to benefit by this and thereby aid competitors to secure the business. This is grossly arbitrary and oppressive.”
Oklahoma v. United States Civil Service Commission, 330 U.S. 127 (decided February 10, 1947): upholding against Tenth Amendment attack United States Civil Service Commission order pursuant to Hatch Act withholding highway funds from Oklahoma because it would not remove member of its highway commission despite admitted violation (he violated it in a big way: he was the chairman of the Democratic State Central Committee)
Milk Wagon Drivers Union of Chicago v. Meadowmoor Dairies, 312 U.S. 287 (decided February 10, 1941): Court could not review state court’s finding of fact as to violence and so sustains injunction against picketing despite Fourteenth Amendment attack (union was protesting dairies outsourcing deliveries to vendors who did not observe workplace standards)
American Federation of Labor v. Swing, 312 U.S. 321 (decided February 10, 1941): decided the same day as Milk Wagon Drivers, but here reversing on First Amendment grounds state court decision that picketing beauty shop for refusal to allow unionization is against common law of state if no direct dispute between employer and employees
February 11
Jaffree v. Board of School Comm’rs of Mobile County, 459 U.S. 1314 (decided February 11, 1983): staying District Court order allowing reciting of Lord’s Prayer as part of morning school activities; District Court judge has to follow Supreme Court precedent even if he disagrees with it (the District Court decision, 554 F.Supp. 1104, reads like a manifesto attacking Supreme Court case law, citing invocations of God by the Founding Fathers, the Pledge of Allegiance, etc.) (the judge, Brevard (not Learned) Hand, was known for displaying the Confederate flag in his office) (the full Court eventually reversed the District Court, 472 U.S. 38)
Conners v. United States, 180 U.S. 271 (decided February 11, 1901): Indian tribe not liable for livestock taken and destroyed when they were fired upon by United States troops while peacefully going to reservation and had to “go on the warpath” (Court cites “ghastly facts of this case” but holds the United States not liable either)
Mabee v. White Plains Publishing Co., 327 U.S. 178 (decided February 11, 1946): newspaper had to comply with Fair Labor Standards Act even though only 0.5% of its daily circulation was out of state (i.e., interstate commerce)
Oklahoma Press Publishing Co. v. Walling, 327 U.S. 186 (decided February 11, 1946): subpoena on newspaper for wage and hour records does not violate Fourth Amendment even though no charges specified; need only probable cause (for what?)
Strong v. United States, 154 U.S. 632 (decided February 11, 1878): owner of vessel sunk after hitting “trees and snags” in river is liable for loss because consented to charterer which operated vessel
February 12
Chambers v. Florida, 309 U.S. 227 (decided February 12, 1940): black suspects (robbery of white man) kept in jail for six days, denied visitors, and subject to persistent questioning, were denied Due Process and confessions were inadmissible
Federal Housing Administration v. Burr, 309 U.S. 242 (decided February 12, 1940): Congressional authority for Federal Housing Administration to “sue and be sued” allows garnishment claim by creditor on FHA employee’s wages
United States v. Fullard-Leo, 331 U.S. 256 (decided February 12, 1947): Court, making its own construction of pre-cessation Hawaiian law (saying it was not bound by decisions of Hawaiian courts), analyzes complicated history of chain of title and on the “lost grant” doctrine (similar to adverse possession) awards Palmyra Island (then part of the Territory of Hawaii) to successors in interest and not to the United States (uninhabited except by researchers, it is currently the only “incorporated unorganized territory” of the United States; it’s cold and miserable where I am and I wish I was there now)
McCarrroll v. Dixie Greyhound Lines, 309 U.S. 176 (decided February 12, 1940): Arkansas statute taxing gasoline in excess of 20 gallons in vehicles entering state burdened interstate commerce (i.e., in violation of Dormant Commerce Clause) (how would they measure what’s in the tank?)
State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Duel, 324 U.S. 154 (decided February 12, 1945): Wisconsin requirement that insurers carry substantial reserves from out-of-state customers did not violate Dormant Commerce Clause; statute was designed for the protection of state’s own citizens
February 13
Strawbridge v. Curtiss, 7 U.S. 267 (decided February 13, 1806): Out of this evil seed grew upwards of two hundred years of ridiculously wasteful procedural litigation. Marshall holds that “between a citizen of a state and a citizen of another state”, under the Judiciary Act of 1789, means that in a diversity action every plaintiff must be from a different state from every defendant. The Constitution itself says only “between citizens of different states”, art. III, §2, and there’s nothing to stop Congress from undoing this decision by statute. The Court itself has noted that all Article III really requires is “minimal” diversity (just one plaintiff has to be from a different state from just one defendant); see 545 U.S. 546. A bill to totally abolish diversity jurisdiction passed the House of Representatives resoundingly in 1978 but failed in the Senate, defeated by the lawyers’ lobby. (Marshall later regretted this holding, see discussion at 43 U.S. 497, 555.)
Phillips v. Mound City Land & Water Ass’n, 124 U.S. 605 (decided February 13, 1888): no federal question presented by state court’s partitioning of land in Los Angeles according to its construction of laws of Mexico as they existed pre-conquest (conquest by the United States, that is)
United States v. Jung Ah Lung, 124 U.S. 621 (decided February 13, 1888): Chinese national in custody after not being allowed to land in San Francisco due to Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was permitted to bring habeas petition (habeas statute was then changed in 1891 to disallow immigrant petitions, see Dept. of Homeland Security v. Thuraissigiam, 2020)
Miller v. Pate, 386 U.S. 1 (decided February 13, 1967): defendant convicted of rape/murder of eight-year-old girl based on his “bloody underpants” presented at trial but prosecutor knew it was just red paint; habeas granted and conviction vacated
Interstate Circuit v. United States, 306 U.S. 208 (decided February 13, 1939): This is one of many cases on whether motion picture distribution agreements violate antitrust laws. I mention it here because of the wonderful sentence: “The production of weak evidence when strong is available can lead only to the conclusion that the strong would have been adverse.” Id. at 226. In my practice I never have to look at SCOTUS cases, but I quote this every chance I get.
February 14
Reynolds v. Atlantic Coast Line R.R. Co., 336 U.S. 207 (decided February 14, 1949): failure to clear sugar cane plants from railbed (this was Alabama) which required brakeman to cross from caboose to seventh instead of to usual sixth car to give signal was not proximate cause of his falling to his death while crossing from sixth to seventh car
Dobson v. Comm’r of Internal Revenue, 321 U.S. 231 (decided February 14, 1944): “Not every gain growing out of a transaction concerning capital assets is allowed the benefits of the capital gains tax provision”. The Court is (or was) aware that people who live off of buying and selling stocks pay a lower tax rate than those of us who work for a living, and tends to construe capital gains narrowly. Here, income was from settlement of a dispute over a stock sale, not from sale of stock itself.
Maty v. Grasselli Chemical Co., 303 U.S. 197 (decided February 14, 1938): applying state law (New Jersey) as to statute of limitations in a diversity action, holds that allegations of another job under same employer wherein was exposed to chemicals are not time-barred even though added after statute has run
Hollingsworth v. Virginia, 3 U.S. 378 (decided February 14, 1798): Eleventh Amendment was valid despite not having been formally presented to the President (obvious to us now, but this was the first time the amendment process was used) and was retroactive (plaintiff, seeking repayment from Virginia, had handed off to an out-of-state plaintiff because Chisholm v. Georgia had made it clear that a state could be sued in federal court by an out-of-state individual but not by an in-state) (Chisholm, of course, had then been abrogated by the Eleventh Amendment)
South Carolina State Highway Dept. v. Barnwell Bros., 303 U.S. 177 (decided February 14, 1938): state restriction on weight of trucks (20,000 lbs.) and width (90 inches) does not unfairly burden interstate commerce, and Congress has not preempted the field
February 15
Oakes v. Mase, 165 U.S. 363 (decided February 15, 1897): vacating judgment for engineer’s estate because negligence causing his death (a switch left open) was caused by conductor on another train who was a “fellow servant” (this was before the Federal Employers’ Liability Act was passed in 1908); Montana had a statute allowing corporate liability for acts of fellow servants but Court is bound by Montana Supreme Court’s ruling that statute violated state constitution
Missouri Pacific R.R. Co. v. David, 284 U.S. 460 (decided February 15, 1932): vacating judgment in FELA suit arising out of murder of night watchman by robbers; McReynolds holds that he assumed the risk, even though boss’s informant knew robbery was coming (though he didn’t inform boss) and watchman would have taken extra precautions if he’d known
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe R.R. Co. v. Saxon, 284 U.S. 458 (decided February 15, 1932): widow’s suit against railroad properly dismissed; brakeman last seen running beside train and then fell under it without any witnesses, but jury could not infer from testimony of boy who saw depressed footprint in soft area that brakeman fell due to softness
United States v. Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co., 318 U.S. 206 (decided February 15, 1943): dismisses case brought by Native American to get telephone poles off her land; it was technically no longer a “reservation” because tribe had moved to Mexico and then come back, and issue was decided by state law, which allowed poles on highway even if put up by private corporation
Miller v. Standard Nut Margarine Co. of Florida, 284 U.S. 498 (decided February 15, 1932): IRS overstepped by classifying “nut margarine” as taxable oleomargarine; contained no animal fat
February 16
Barron v. City of Baltimore, 32 U.S. 243 (decided February 16, 1833): Bill of Rights (here, the Fifth Amendment takings clause) applies only to federal action, not state (Barron could not get compensation for City’s modification of stream which silted up his wharf) (I suppose the Maryland constititution had no takings clause); abrogated by the Fourteenth Amendment
Fisher v. Hurst, 333 U.S. 147 (decided February 16, 1948): In Sipuel v. Board of Regents, January 12, 1948, summarized above, the Court had ruled that the University of Oklahoma could not refuse an applicant on account of race, and had remanded the case back to the District Court for implementation. But the District Court ordered that either Ms. Sipuel be admitted, or that UO set up a separate school of law for black students! Here the Court affirms that ridiculous ruling. (The separate law school, “Langston University School of Law”, with her as the only student, didn’t last long. She refused to attend, threatened to sue again, and UO gave in and let her into their existing law school.)
Funk Bros. Seed Co. v. Kalo Inoculant Co., 333 U.S. 127 (decided February 16, 1948): product for injecting nitrogen-fixing bacteria into legumes not patentable; effective agent was the bacteria which is found in nature
The Caledonian, 17 U.S. 100 (decided February 16, 1819): “prize of war” can be captured after it arrives at port (this was an American vessel, with a cargo of rice, captured by the British during the War of 1812)
Woods v. Cloyd W. Miller Co., 333 U.S. 138 (decided February 16, 1948): landlord in “Cleveland Defense Rental Area” fails in his attempt to raise rents 40% - 60%; violated Housing and Rent Act of 1947, which was proper extension of War Powers Act because it dealt with dislocations caused by war
February 17
Brown v. Mississippi, 297 U.S. 278 (decided February 17, 1936): confessions “extorted by brutality and violence” violated Due Process under Fourteenth Amendment (illiterate black men accused of killing white planter were “pre-hanged” to extort confessions; rope marks on their necks were visible at trial)
Wesberry v. Sanders, 376 U.S. 1 (decided February 17, 1964): applies “one person, one vote” Equal Protection rule to House of Representatives and invalidates redistricting in Georgia where one Congressional district had three times as many people as neighboring districts; in dissent Harlan points out that several one-district states have far less people than any one Georgia district and argues that Court cannot tell Congress how to constitute itself
United States v. Healy, 376 U.S. 75 (decided February 17, 1964): Federal Kidnapping Act applies to air travel and does not require monetary motive (defendants hijacked private plane to Cuba, in effect kidnapping pilot)
Walling v. Portland Terminal Co., 330 U.S. 148 (decided February 17, 1947): trainees alleging inadequate wages (they were given only an allowance for expenses) were not “employees” so as to bring Fair Labor Standards Act suit; railroad did not have obligation to hire them at end of two-week training and they were free to go work for another railroad
Smith v. O’Grady, 312 U.S. 329 (decided February 17, 1941): habeas granted to prisoner denied counsel who agreed to plead guilty without ever being told what the charges were
February 18
Bibles v. Oregon Natural Desert Ass’n, 519 U.S. 355 (decided February 18, 1997): Freedom of Information Act did not entitle environmental group to obtain mailing list of Bureau of Land Management’s newsletter “so that alternative information could be sent to them”
Robinson v. Shell Oil Co., 519 U.S. 337 (decided February 18, 1997): antiretaliation provision of Civil Rights Act of 1964 applied to post-employment actions (here, negative reference given by former employer against whom plaintiff, now seeking another job, had filed a racial discrimination complaint with the EEOC)
General Motors Corp. v. Tracy, 519 U.S. 278 (decided February 18, 1997): buyer of natural gas had standing to challenge state exemption of local distributors from sales and use taxes placed on sellers (the Court held that the exemption did not violate Dormant Commerce Clause or Equal Protection)
McMillan v. McNeill, 17 U.S. 209 (decided February 18, 1819): foreign bankruptcy not effective in this country; contract supposedly discharged there still enforceable here
Packard v. Banton, 264 U.S. 140 (decided February 18, 1924): upholds against Equal Protection attack New York statute requiring drivers for hire to obtain liability insurance; statute applied only to large cities and was relevant to public safety
February 19
Ogden v. Saunders, 25 U.S. 213 (decided February 19, 1827): states may legislate to any extent not prohibited by the Constitution and not exclusively the domain of Congress, specifically, Congress’s power to “establish uniform laws on bankruptcies throughout the United States” doesn’t prevent states from creating their own bankruptcy statutes so long as they don’t conflict with federal law and don’t affect contracts in effect before statutes went into effect (a long, long decision, with lots of opinions; this is about all one can say as to the “majority” written by Johnson)
United States v. Detroit Timber & Lumber Co., 200 U.S. 321 (decided February 19, 1906): A dispute over ownership of some forest land, but why does this case name sound familiar? Because it's added to the syllabus of every Court case to remind us that the syllabus is not part of the holding or the opinion and should never be cited. Here, the Government relied on a headnote in Hawley v. Diller, 1900, which the Court says was not relevant to the facts of that case. (Someone applying for our law review did this regularly in his submission -- one of the editors, a friend of mine, was pleased to “ding” him on his laziness because he was generally an asshole -- he didn’t fix the problem, gave up on applying, and went on to become a trial lawyer.)
Owasso Indepedent School District v. Falvo, 534 U.S. 426 (decided February 19, 2002): Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, which requires confidentiality of grades recorded by school, not violated by “peer grading” (students grading each other’s assignments per teacher instructions and calling the grades out); suit was brought by parent who felt her child was embarrassed by this practice
Lynce v. Mathis, 519 U.S. 433 (decided February 19, 1997): Florida statute retroactively canceling early release program (so that released prisoners were reincarcerated) violated Ex Post Facto clause (art. I, §10)
Beverly v. Brooke, 15 U.S. 100 (decided February 19, 1817): owner of slaves who escaped during voyage could not recover value of slaves from master of vessel; opinion by Marshall recounts master’s attempts to land at various European ports blockaded during Napoleon’s “Continental System” attempt to strangle British and American shipping (which was unsuccessful)
Maryland v. Wilson, 519 U.S. 408 (decided February 19, 1997): police at traffic stop may order passengers out of car “after noticing apparent nervousness”; cocaine falling to ground during exit was admissible
Regents of the University of California v. Doe, 519 U.S. 425 (decided February 19, 1997): state university enjoyed Eleventh Amendment immunity from suit in federal court even though per prior agreement with federal government it would be indemnified for any judgment against it (this was a breach of contract suit by employee of federally owned laboratory operated by university)
United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind, 261 U.S. 204 (decided February 19, 1923): Sikh not allowed to become naturalized citizen because not “white” or “black” (the acceptable categories under the then current law)
February 20
Jacobson v. Massachusetts, 197 U.S. 11 (decided February 20, 1905): upholding state statute allowing local boards of health to require vaccinations (plaintiff contested Cambridge’s 1902 attempt to stem smallpox epidemic)
Timbs v. Indiana, 586 U.S. — (decided February 20, 2019): Excessive Fines Clause of Eighth Amendment is enforceable against states under Fourteenth Amendment; remands on issue of whether civil forfeiture statute violates Clause (here, vehicle seized worth four times the heroin defendant transported in it) (Indiana Supreme Court ended up holding statute unconstitutional, 169 N.E.3d 361)
Gunn v. Minton, 568 U.S. 251 (decided February 20, 2013): federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction of patent cases but not legal malpractice claim alleging mishandling of patent case
United States v. Euge, 444 U.S. 707 (decided February 20, 1980): IRS doesn’t need a court order to make you go to their office to provide a handwriting examplar
Curtis v. Loether, 415 U.S. 189 (decided February 20, 1974): housing discrimination action brought under Civil Rights Law of 1968 carries right to a jury trial, even though it didn’t exist in 1791 when the Seventh Amendment was adopted and even though it allows injunctive relief (an equitable remedy; the 7A applies only to actions at law)
February 21
Digital Realty Trust, Inc. v. Somers, 583 U.S. 149 (decided February 21, 2018): whistleblower statute did not allow damages for retaliatory termination where employee had reported securities laws violations to senior management but not to the SEC
Class v. United States, 583 U.S. 174 (decided February 21, 2018): defendant pleading guilty can still appeal on grounds that statute under which he was charged is unconstitutional (carrying a gun on U.S. Capitol grounds, 40 U.S.C. §5104(e)(1), which he argued violated Second Amendment; the D.C. Circuit ended up rejecting this argument, 930 F.3d 460, but that was before Bruen, 2022, where the Court, disagreeing with both parties in front of it, held that cases such as Class applied too lax a standard of scrutiny, see Bruen fn.4)
Ministry of Defense of Iran v. Elahi, 546 U.S. 450 (decided February 21, 2006): Elahi, an Iranian citizen, sued the Islamic Republic of Iran (he claimed it murdered his brother) in federal court and got a default judgment. Meanwhile Iran’s Ministry of Defense won an arbitration award in Switzerland on an unrelated matter and went to federal court to confirm it, thus locating the award in the U.S. Here Elahi moves to attach it so as to satisfy his judgment. The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act does not apply to commercial activities of an “agent or instrumentality” of a foreign state but the Court, relying on the opinion of the Solicitor General, holds that the Ministry of Defense is not an “agent or instrumentality” but part of the foreign state itself. Therefore the Ministry of Defense has immunity and the petition for attachment is dismissed.
Gonzalez v. O Centro Espirita Beneficente Uniao do Vegetal, 546 U.S. 418 (decided February 21, 2006): Religious Freedom Restoration Act prevented prosecution of religious sect for using hallucinogenic tea in their services
Blanchard v. Bergeron, 489 U.S. 87 (decided February 21, 1989): 40% (!!) contingency fee arrangement between plaintiff and his lawyer did not place ceiling on amount of fees recovered from losing side in §1983 action (I can personally testify to the ridiculous over-lawyering by plaintiff counsel in §1983 actions, knowing they can recover for it or at least use it as leverage for settlement)
February 22
Joshua DeShaney v. Winnebago County, 489 U.S. 189 (decided February 22, 1989): Due Process protection does not apply to actions of private actors and state has no duty to provide for citizen’s safety absent a “special relationship” such as when he is in custody (here, child injured by father’s abuse even after state welfare officials repeatedly told of abusive incidents but made no attempt to remove him from home) (as Blackmun memorably wrote in dissent, “Poor Joshua!”)
Whalen v. Roe, 429 U.S. 589 (decided February 22, 1977): right to privacy not invaded by state statute requiring state to receive copies of all prescriptions of narcotics; valid use of police power, security procedures in place, and no showing that information will be misused such that patients become stigmatized as addicts
Buck v. Davis, 580 U.S. 100 (decided February 22, 2017): ineffective assistance of counsel when during penalty phase of capital murder trial counsel presented expert whose report said that being black was a plus factor for future violence (the expert’s general opinion was that defendant himself was unlikely to be a future danger, but the damage had been done, with the prosecution hitting on this in summation)
Messerschmidt v. Millender, 565 U.S. 535 (decided February 22, 2012): police searching for any and all firearms, and for gang paraphernalia, during warrant to search for sawed-off shotgun were entitled to qualified immunity (warrant not overbroad because these were reasonable things to search for in connection with suspected crime of past shooting of girlfriend in retaliation for her calling police)
Helix Energy Solutions Group v. Hewitt, 598 U.S. 39 (decided February 22, 2023): highly paid oil rig supervisor entitled to overtime under Fair Labor Standards Act because though a “bona fide executive” he was paid by the day (Court harmonizes two FLSA definitions)
Oregon v. Guzek, 546 U.S. 517 (decided February 22, 2006): defendant can present alibi evidence at sentencing but not if it’s inconsistent with conviction (here, testimony of mother which the jury had necessarily rejected in coming to its guilty verdict)
February 23
Johnson v. California, 543 U.S. 499 (decided February 23, 2005): unwritten state policy of segregating new double-celled prisoners by race must be examined under “strict scrutiny” (case then settled; prisons are taking a go-slow approach to in-cell integration, I think understandably)
Illinois v. Fisher, 540 U.S. 544 (decided February 23, 2004): prosecution for cocaine possession can proceed despite police disposal of cocaine seized; defendant had been on the lam for 10 years, disposal was per normal procedures, and presence of cocaine at trial was unlikely to be exculpatory (to state the obvious)
Walker v. Martin, 562 U.S. 307 (decided February 23, 2011): Court cannot review state’s dismissal of habeas proceeding; failure to meet state statute of limitations was “independent state ground” for dismissal
Williamson v. Mazda Motor of America, Inc., 562 U.S. 323 (decided February 23, 2011): federal regulation allowing option of simple lap belt (I miss those) vs. lap-and-shoulder belt did not preempt state law claim that fatal accident would have been prevented had manufacturer installed lap-and-shoulder belt
Packer Corp. v. Utah, 285 U.S. 105 (decided February 23, 1932): upholds against discrimination, Dormant Commerce Clause and due process arguments Utah statute prohibiting tobacco advertising on billboards and placards but not in newspapers or magazines (the public can’t avoid seeing billboards, but to see an ad in a newspaper you have to buy it)
February 24
Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, 393 U.S. 503 (decided February 24, 1969): being in school does not restrict student’s First Amendment rights (students were told to remove black armbands as protest against Vietnam War); that year I was the only student in my conservative public school displaying a peace symbol (I drew it in big markers on my loose-leaf) so this decision meant a lot to me
Hustler Magazine v. Falwell, 485 U.S. 46 (decided February 24, 1988): First Amendment prohibits Jerry Falwell as a “public figure” from bringing intentional infliction of emotional distress claim against Hustler for “parody” of his life, absent “actual malice” (knowledge of falsity, which you can never prove if it’s a parody) (this case was grossly misrepresented in the movie “People v. Larry Flynt”, and at the time provoked criticism even from noted feminists, who realized that they could be next; Hustler was a disgusting, vile magazine, and though I confess to guilty giggles from the “Chester the Molester” cartoons, its “parody” of Falwell, besides not being funny, was disgusting, vile, and juvenile)
Unicolors, Inc. v. H & M Hennes & Mauritz, LP, 595 U.S. 178 (decided February 24, 2022): inaccurate understanding of law does not invalidate copyright (plaintiff, designer of fabric, had submitted one application covering 31 designs when it should have submitted 31) and conduct fell within Copyright Act’s safe-harbor provision, 17 U.S.C. §411(b)(1)(A); restores verdict in copyright infringement suit
United States v. Hayes, 555 U.S. 415 (decided February 24, 2004): 1996 Gun Control Act prohibited possession by those convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence; applies here to man convicted of battery on his then-wife even though charge for which he pleaded guilty was generic battery
Doe v. Chao, 540 U.S. 614 (decided February 24, 2004): can’t get award in Privacy Act suit if no showing of actual damages (vacating award of $1,000 to plaintiff whose Social Security Number supplied when applying for Black Lung benefits was then printed by Department of Labor in group public hearing notice)
February 25
North Carolina State Board of Dental Examiners v. FTC, 574 U.S. 494 (decided February 25, 2015): upholding FTC ruling that North Carolina Board of Dental Examiners committed antitrust violation by prohibiting non-dentists from providing teeth whitening services (State action is immune from antitrust liability, Parker v. Brown, 1943, but Board was not a governmental entity nor was under State supervision)
Yates v. United States, 574 U.S. 528 (decided February 25, 2015): Yates, caught with undersized fish in violation of conservation laws, threw them overboard despite being told by wildlife official to preserve them. Court holds that this did not violate 18 U.S.C. §1519, which criminalizes “altering, destroying, mutilating, concealing, covering up, falsifying, or making a false entry in any record, document, or tangible object” with the intent to impede a federal investigation. (So if in addition to ditching the fish Yates had written down that he had preserved them, he would have been convicted. Lesson: it’s fine to actually destroy evidence, and even admit it, as long as they can’t tell such from the records.) 5 - 4 decision. Kagan, in dissent, points out that a fish is a tangible object, and cites Dr. Seuss’s “One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish”. (Yates was also convicted under 18 U.S.C. §2232(a), “Destruction or Removal of Property to Prevent Seizure”; he didn't appeal that conviction.)
Prince v. United States, 352 U.S. 322 (decided February 25, 1957): expanding federal bank robbery statute by including “entry of bank with intent to rob it” did not increase maximum punishment (20 years for robbery became 20 years for entry + robbery)
Hernandez v. Mesa, 589 U.S. — (decided February 25, 2020): parents of unarmed 15-year-old Mexican child shot and killed while crossing border into Mexico (agent claimed he wasn’t playing jump-over game with friends but trying to cross the border illegally but WTF??) cannot sue; one can sue federal agents for violation of Constitutional rights such as Due Process and unreasonable seizure (Bivens v. Six Unknown Federal Narcotics Agents, 1971) but not for cross-border incidents which are a political question between countries
Fernandez v. California, 571 U.S. 292 (decided February 25, 2014): post-arrest consent to search apartment can be given by robbery suspect’s live-in girlfriend (she was apparent victim of domestic assault by suspect and police reasonably wanted to question her outside his intimidating presence)
February 26
Intel Corp. Investment Policy Committee v. Sulyma, 589 U.S. — (decided February 26, 2020): 3-year statute of limitations for ERISA suit begins when plaintiff actually knew employer had improperly invested funds, not when it could be deduced from those annual reports nobody reads
United States v. Apel, 571 U.S. 359 (decided February 26, 2014): commandant’s order barring protester from Vandenberg Air Force Base applied to whole property, including publicly accessible area reserved for protesters; conviction under 18 U.S.C. §1382 upheld
United States v. Wells, 519 U.S. 482 (decided February 26, 1997): conviction under 18 U.S.C. §1014 (making false statement to federally insured bank) does not require that false statement be material (here, lessor of office equipment which assigned proceeds to bank hid the fact that lessor and not lessees was responsible for repairs)
United States v. Maine et al., 516 U.S. 365 (decided February 26, 1996): original jurisdiction case where Court rejects Massachusetts’s argument that it extends over all of Vineyard Sound and almost all of Nantucket Sound; decree describes straight lines of demarcation (case originally involved 13 Atlantic states and ended up with practically every state limited to three miles offshore)
Ake v. Oklahoma, 470 U.S. 68 (decided February 26, 1985): established rule that defendant is entitled to state-appointed psychiatrist to evaluate insanity defense (hence the phrase “Ake hearing”)
February 27
Washington v. Harper, 494 U.S. 210 (decided February 27, 1990): mentally ill prisoner could be treated with psychotropic drugs against his will; finding that he was danger to himself and others by panel of correctional officials and medical professionals comported with due process
Madison v. Alabama, 586 U.S. — (decided February 27, 2019): Eighth Amendment prohibits executing prisoner who no longer knows why he is being executed; here, Court remands for finding as to whether post-conviction mental condition (caused by series of strokes) consisted of specific delusions or just overall dementia (hearing was never conducted due to Madison’s ill health; he died on Death Row a year later, age 69)
Patchak v. Zinke, 583 U.S. 244 (decided February 27, 2018): Congress did not violate separation of powers by stripping federal courts of jurisdiction to hear claims as to specific land given by Interior Department to Michigan tribe for casino use (the fact that Native Americans survive by fostering gambling always depresses me, even if they think they’re putting one over on the White Man)
Raygor v. Regents of University of Minnesota, 534 U.S. 533 (decided February 27, 2002): pendency of federal suit (dismissed on Eleventh Amendment grounds) does not toll statute of limitations for state suit (this was an age discrimination suit against a state university)
Semtek Int’l Inc. v. Lockheed Martin Corp., 531 U.S. 497 (decided February 27, 2001): dismissal of diversity suit in California based on California statute of limitations did not bar subsequent suit brought in Maryland state court subject to Maryland’s longer statute (suit was for “inducement of breach of contract and various business torts”)
February 28
Johnson v. M’Intosh, 21 U.S. 543 (decided February 28, 1823): Why do law professors like to play with the heads of 1L’s? In Property Law, instead of starting the course with some simple cases illustrating basic principles, they confuse new law students with this mishmash involving purchase of land from an Indian tribe, the granting of a federal land patent to someone else, the “doctrine of discovery”, “aboriginal title” . . . and almost all the opinion is dicta where they’re forced to listen to Marshall expound on the Rights of Whites by Conquest. There is no possible way this case helps them understand real life property law. (Another torturer of students in their first week of law school was Farnsworth, who decided to start his Contracts casebook with Laredo Hides v. H & H Meat Products, where the student is forced to learn a complicated formula for damages — this is, mind you, after a contract is formed, after it’s broken, and after it’s litigated on liability. “In medias res” might be a good trick to use in fiction, but in teaching a course it’s poor, poor, poor.) As for the holding, it’s not worth mentioning because it didn’t pertain to the actual facts. Most law students would be better off if they could extract all memory of this case from their brains.
Cook v. Gralike, 531 U.S. 510 (decided February 28, 2001): state could not identify on the ballot those candidates for Congress who failed to support term limits (which BTW was like inviting couch potatoes to an exercise class; voters who support term limits by definition are too lazy to drag their asses to the polls to vote the rascals out)
Michigan v. Bryant, 562 U.S. 344 (decided February 28, 2011): hearsay statement by police as to mortally wounded man’s identification of who shot him did not violate Sixth Amendment Confrontation Clause; purpose of “emergency” interrogation was to save man’s life (he died in hospital a few hours later)
Texaco, Inc. v. Dagher, 547 U.S. 1 (decided February 28, 2006): joint venture’s decision to sell separately branded gasoline at same price was not illegal horizontal price fixing (the “joint venture” was between Texaco and Shell Oil, who agreed to sell “Texaco” and “Shell” gas at same price — how is this not an illegal “cartel”? — yet Thomas writes for a unanimous Court)
Delaware v. Pennsylvania, 598 U.S. 115 (decided February 28, 2023): other states successfully sue to prevent Delaware from hogging up abandoned MoneyGram orders; they go not to MoneyGram’s state of incorporation (Delaware, of course) but to states where they were purchased
Maryland v. Buie, 494 U.S. 325 (decided February 28, 1990): police entering with a warrant and arresting armed robbery suspect can conduct “protective sweep” of premises for individuals who might pose danger (during this “protective sweep” police found outfit matching description of what man was wearing at time of robbery)
February 29
What follows is every case decided on February 29, 1892. This is in honor of my wife, born on February 29. Page numbers are to 143 U.S. except where noted.
Union Mut. Life Ins. Co. v. Hanford, p. 187: buyer of mortgaged property is first in line for payment of mortgage and original mortgagor not liable if buyer gets extension of time
New Orleans City & Lake R.R. Co. v. New Orleans, p. 192: City charter giving tax break to railroad company did not prevent it from adding different tax later on
Waterman v. Alden, p. 196: Will provision stating that brother still owed estate (all other intrafamilial debts being forgiven) did not apply to debts incurred after date of Will
In re Woods, p. 202: personal injury action where only issue was collateral estoppel effect of dismissal at close of plaintiff’s case was not important enough to grant cert
Horner v. United States, p. 207: prisoner properly moved from New York to Illinois for trial because that was where his crime of “delivering” gambling material through the mails was committed as defined by statute (he had mailed it in New York but addressed it to a person in Illinois)
Lawrence v. Nelson, p. 215: claimant who had obtained judgment against administrator in another state not bound by in-state requirement that claims against estate be filed within two years
Hammond v. Hopkins, p. 224: certificates of two long-dead justices of the peace admissible and outweighed testimony of wife that she never heard of property deed nor signed it (also at issue was a Will touchingly leaving “my little slave boy Frank to my daughter Victoria Hopkins”)
Washburn & Moen Mfg. Co. v. Beat 'Em All Barbed Wire Co., p. 275: competing patents for “improved” barbed wire (diagrams are in the opinion); issues are whether one was devoid for “want of novelty”, proof needed to show that later-patented product was in use first, and whether date of application or date of patent is relevant (it’s the date of application)
Michigan Ins. Bank v. Eldred, p. 293: bank’s change of status during lawsuit from state bank to national bank did not change the issues
Ludeling v. Chaffe, p. 301: assignee in bankruptcy has rights superior to pre-bankruptcy creditor
Horn Silver Mining Co. v. People, p. 306: New York tax on all capital stock of corporations doing business in the state even including out of state stock does not violate Dormant Commerce Clause
Chandler v. Pomeroy, p. 318: enforcing agreement between all testator’s children to divvy up estate equally and to cancel the Will “to get the property out of the hands of the lawyers” (suit brought by executor named in Will)
Chicago & Grand Trunk R.R. Co. v. Wellman, p. 339: error to instruct jury that statute setting railroad rates was unconstitutional (effect of which was to necessarily hold that rates testified to were unreasonable)
Briggs v. United States, p. 346: allowing suit by planter for cotton seized by Union Army during Civil War to go forward; suit was allowed by the Captured and Abandoned Property Act of 1863, cotton was bought in transaction between private parties without C.S.A. involvement, and United States could not use Statute of Frauds as a defense (this is an 1892 ruling because claim couldn’t be brought until court of claims was given jurisdiction in 1888)
Nebraska v. Iowa, p. 359: in original jurisdiction case, awarding some land to Nebraska and some to Iowa because in some places Missouri River changed due to accretion (change in boundary) but above Omaha by avulsion (no change)
Winona & St. Peter R.R. Co. v. Plainview, p. 371: out-of-state parties declared to be bona fide purchasers by federal court based on state court decision holding bonds valid did not lose their rights when state appellate court reversed
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Iron Silver Mining Co. v. Mike & Starr Gold & Silver Mining Co., p. 430, and Sullivan v. Iron Silver Mining Co., p. 431: “placer claim” (right to mine specific area) does not apply to vein or lode already known to exist there
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Schwab v. Berggren, p. 442, and Fielden v. Illinois, p. 452: one sentenced to death does not have to be present when appellate court affirms judgment
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Holy Trinity Church v. United States, p. 457: Anglican minister was not worker of the type subject to immigration restrictions (“cheap, unskilled labor was making the trouble, the influx of which Congress sought to prevent”)
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The Sylvia Handy, p. 513: Court cannot disturb finding that Russian “promiscuous” killing of seals, so as to disturb their mating grounds, took place in Alaska waters (justifying seizure)
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Budd v. People, p. 517: New York statute regulating loading of grain elevators did not impact interstate commerce
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Hoyt v. Latham, p. 553: heirs of “very large estate” ratified unauthorized grant of land by their inaction
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United States v. Texas, p. 621: border dispute under Court’s original jurisdiction is equitable (not at-law) claim (i.e., the Court can fashion whatever remedy it wants)
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Field v. Clark, p. 649: court cannot look to journals, minutes, etc. of Congress to determine if proper procedures were followed; clerk’s authenticated bill sent to President is conclusive proof (law was to allow President to retaliate against foreign powers by restricting importation of “sugars, molasses, tea and hides”)
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and --
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United States v. Ballin, 144 U.S. 1: journal of House of Representatives is conclusive proof as to whether quorum was present in passing a bill (distinguished Field v. Clark) (law concerned classification of fabrics for customs purposes)
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