| Location: | Washington, D.C. |
| Type: | Presidential nomination with Senate confirmation |
| Authority: | Constitution of the United States, Art. III, §1 |
| Terms: | life tenure, subject to impeachment and removal |
| Positions: | 9 (by statute) |
This is a list of cases reported in volume 254 of United States Reports, decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1920 and 1921.
See also: List of justices of the Supreme Court of the United States.
See also: List of United States Supreme Court justices by time in office.
See also: List of justices of the Supreme Court of the United States by court composition.
The Supreme Court is established by Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of the United States, which says: "The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court . . .". The size of the Court is not specified; the Constitution leaves it to Congress to set the number of justices. Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 Congress originally fixed the number of justices at six (one chief justice and five associate justices).[1] Since 1789 Congress has varied the size of the Court from six to seven, nine, ten, and back to nine justices (always including one chief justice).
When the cases in volume 254 were decided the Court comprised the following nine members:
| Portrait | Justice | Office | Home State | Succeeded | Date confirmed by the Senate (Vote) | Tenure on Supreme Court |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edward Douglass White | Chief Justice | Louisiana | Melville Fuller | (Acclamation) | – May 19, 1921 (Died) | |
| Joseph McKenna | Associate Justice | California | Stephen Johnson Field | (Acclamation) | – January 5, 1925 (Retired) | |
| Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. | Associate Justice | Massachusetts | Horace Gray | (Acclamation) | – January 12, 1932 (Retired) | |
| William R. Day | Associate Justice | Ohio | George Shiras Jr. | (Acclamation) | – November 13, 1922 (Retired) | |
| Willis Van Devanter | Associate Justice | Wyoming | Edward Douglass White (as Associate Justice) | (Acclamation) | – June 2, 1937 (Retired) | |
| Mahlon Pitney | Associate Justice | New Jersey | John Marshall Harlan | (50–26) | – December 31, 1922 (Resigned) | |
| James Clark McReynolds | Associate Justice | Tennessee | Horace Harmon Lurton | (44–6) | – January 31, 1941 (Retired) | |
| Louis Brandeis | Associate Justice | Massachusetts | Joseph Rucker Lamar | (47–22) | – February 13, 1939 (Retired) | |
| John Hessin Clarke | Associate Justice | Ohio | Charles Evans Hughes | (Acclamation) | – September 18, 1922 (Retired) | |
In United States v. Wheeler, 254 U.S. 281 (1920), the Supreme Court held that the Constitution alone does not grant the federal government the power to prosecute kidnappers, even if moving abductees across state lines on federally-regulated railroads at the behest of local law enforcement officials, and only the states have the authority to punish a private citizen's unlawful violation of another's freedom of movement. The case was a landmark interpretation of the Privileges and Immunities Clause of the Constitution,[2] [3] and contains a classic legal statement of the right to travel in American jurisprudence.[4] [5] In most common law jurisdictions, kidnapping[6] had been outlawed by the courts, not by statute, but the Supreme Court had held in United States v. Hudson and Goodwin (1812) that the Constitution prohibited common law crimes.[7] It was only after the Lindbergh kidnapping in 1932, which ended in the death of 21-month-old Charles Lindbergh, Jr., that Congress passed the Federal Kidnapping Act, which prohibited kidnapping.[8]
Duplex Printing Press Co. v. Deering, 254 U.S. 443 (1921), is an antitrust case in which the Supreme Court examined the labor provisions of the Clayton Antitrust Act and reaffirmed its prior ruling in Loewe v. Lawlor that a secondary boycott was an illegal restraint on trade. The decision authorized courts to issue injunctions to block this practice, and any other tactics used by labor unions that were deemed unlawful restraints on trade.[9]
See also: United States district court.
See also: United States court of appeals.
See also: United States federal courts. Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 the federal court structure at the time comprised District Courts, which had general trial jurisdiction; Circuit Courts, which had mixed trial and appellate (from the US District Courts) jurisdiction; and the United States Supreme Court, which had appellate jurisdiction over the federal District and Circuit courts—and for certain issues over state courts. The Supreme Court also had limited original jurisdiction (i.e., in which cases could be filed directly with the Supreme Court without first having been heard by a lower federal or state court). There were one or more federal District Courts and/or Circuit Courts in each state, territory, or other geographical region.
The Judiciary Act of 1891 created the United States Courts of Appeals and reassigned the jurisdiction of most routine appeals from the district and circuit courts to these appellate courts. The Act created nine new courts that were originally known as the "United States Circuit Courts of Appeals." The new courts had jurisdiction over most appeals of lower court decisions. The Supreme Court could review either legal issues that a court of appeals certified or decisions of court of appeals by writ of certiorari. On January 1, 1912, the effective date of the Judicial Code of 1911, the old Circuit Courts were abolished, with their remaining trial court jurisdiction transferred to the U.S. District Courts.
Bluebook citation style is used for case names, citations, and jurisdictions.
| Case Name | Page and year | Opinion of the Court | Concurring opinion(s) | Dissenting opinion(s) | Lower Court | Disposition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Piedmont and Georges Creek Coal Company v. Seaboard Fisheries Company | 1 (1920) | Brandeis | none | none | 1st Cir. | affirmed |
| Western Union Telegraph Company v. Speight | 17 (1920) | Holmes | none | none | N.C. | reversed |
| Heald v. District of Columbia | 20 (1920) | White | none | none | D.C. Cir. | dismissed |
| New York Scaffolding Company v. Liebel-Binney Construction Company | 24 (1920) | McKenna | none | none | 3d Cir. | affirmed |
| New York Scaffolding Company v. Chain Belt Company | 32 (1920) | McKenna | none | none | 7th Cir. | reversed |
| United States v. Butt | 38 (1920) | McKenna | none | none | N.D. Cal. | reversed |
| Pryor v. Williams | 43 (1920) | McKenna | none | none | Mo. | reversed |
| New York ex rel. Troy Union Railroad Company v. Mealy | 47 (1920) | Holmes | none | none | N.Y. Sup. Ct. | affirmed |
| Johnson v. Maryland | 51 (1920) | Holmes | none | none | Md. Cir. Ct. | reversed |
| Seaboard Air Line Railroad Company v. United States | 57 (1920) | Day | none | none | E.D. Va. | affirmed |
| Turner v. Wade | 64 (1920) | Day | none | none | Ga. | reversed |
| Arndstein v. McCarthy I | 71 (1920) | McReynolds | none | none | S.D.N.Y. | reversed |
| United States v. National Surety Company | 73 (1920) | Brandeis | none | none | 8th Cir. | reversed |
| Niles-Bement-Pond Company v. Iron Moulders Union Local No. 68 | 77 (1920) | Clarke | none | none | 6th Cir. | affirmed |
| Wells Brothers Company of New York v. United States | 83 (1920) | Clarke | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Street v. Lincoln Safe Deposit Company | 88 (1920) | Clarke | McReynolds | none | S.D.N.Y. | reversed |
| Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company v. Johnson | 96 (1920) | Holmes | none | none | 8th Cir. | certification |
| Harris v. Bell | 103 (1920) | VanDevanter | none | none | 8th Cir. | affirmed |
| Underwood Typewriter Company v. Chamberlain | 113 (1920) | Brnadeis | none | none | Conn. Super. Ct. | affirmed |
| Watson v. State Comptroller of New York | 122 (1920) | Brandeis | none | none | N.Y. County Sur. Ct. | affirmed |
| International Bridge Company v. New York | 126 (1920) | Holmes | none | none | N.Y. Sup. Ct. | affirmed |
| Horning v. District of Columbia | 135 (1920) | Holmes | none | Brandeis | D.C. Cir. | affirmed |
| Rock Island, Arkansas & Louisiana Railroad Company v. United States | 141 (1920) | Holmes | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| The Coca-Cola Company v. Koke Company of America | 143 (1920) | Holmes | none | none | 9th Cir. | reversed |
| United States v. Nederlandsch-Americaansche Stoomvaart Maatschappij | 148 (1920) | Day | none | none | Ct. Cl. | reversed |
| Berlin Mills Company v. Procter and Gamble Company | 156 (1920) | Day | none | none | 2d Cir. | reversed |
| De Rees v. Costaguta | 166 (1920) | Day | none | none | S.D.N.Y. | dismissed |
| Wells Fargo and Company v. Taylor | 175 (1920) | VanDevanter | none | none | 5th Cir. | reversed |
| Jin Fuey Moy v. United States | 189 (1920) | Pitney | none | none | W.D. Pa. | affirmed |
| Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Company v. Des Moines Union Railway Company | 196 (1920) | Pitney | none | none | 8th Cir. | multiple |
| Nicchia v. New York | 228 (1920) | McReynolds | none | none | King's County Ct | affirmed |
| Bothwell v. United States | 231 (1920) | McReynolds | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Sampliner v. Motion Picture Patents Company | 233 (1920) | McReynolds | none | none | 2d Cir. | reversed |
| Great Western Serum Company v. United States | 240 (1920) | McReynolds | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Thames Towboat Company v. The Francis McDonald | 242 (1920) | McReynolds | none | none | S.D.N.Y. | affirmed |
| Ana Maria Sugar Company, Inc. v. Quinones | 245 (1920) | Brandeis | none | none | 1st Cir. | affirmed |
| United States v. Northern Pacific Railroad Company | 251 (1920) | Brandeis | none | none | 8th Cir. | reversed |
| United States v. Lehigh Valley Railroad Company | 255 (1920) | Clarke | none | none | S.D.N.Y. | reversed |
| Haupt v. United States | 272 (1920) | Clarke | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| United States v. Wheeler | 281 (1920) | White | none | none | D. Ariz. | affirmed |
| Walls v. Midland Carbon Company | 300 (1920) | McKenna | none | none | D. Wy. | reversed |
| Gilbert v. Minnesota | 325 (1920) | McKenna | none | Brandeis | Minn. | affirmed |
| United States ex rel. Hall v. Payne | 343 (1920) | McKenna | none | none | D.C. Cir. | affirmed |
| Vallely v. Northern Fire and Marine Insurance Company | 348 (1920) | McKenna | none | none | 8th Cir. | certification |
| Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway Company v. Woodbury | 357 (1920) | Brandeis | none | none | Tex. Civ. App. | reversed |
| Thornton v. Duffy | 361 (1920) | McKenna | White | none | Ohio | affirmed |
| Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad Company v. Washburn Lignite Coal Company | 370 (1920) | VanDevanter | none | none | N.D. Dist. Ct. | dismissed |
| Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad Company v. C.L. Merrick Company | 376 (1920) | VanDevanter | none | none | N.D. Dist. Ct. | dismissed |
| Arndstein v. McCarthy II | 379 (1920) | McReynolds | none | none | S.D.N.Y. | reargument denied |
| Marshall v. New York | 380 (1920) | Brandeis | none | none | 2d Cir. | affirmed |
| Cochran v. United States | 387 (1921) | McKenna | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Erie Railroad Company v. Board of Public Utility Commissioners of New Jersey | 394 (1921) | Holmes | none | none | N.J. | affirmed |
| Southern Pacific Company v. Berkshire | 415 (1921) | Holmes | none | Clarke | Tex. Civ. App. | reversed |
| Atwater v. Guernsey | 423 (1921) | Holmes | none | none | 2d Cir. | affirmed |
| National Brake and Electric Company v. Christensen | 425 (1921) | Day | none | none | 7th Cir. | reversed |
| Sullivan v. Kidd | 433 (1921) | Day | none | none | D. Kan. | reversed |
| Duplex Printing Press Company v. Deering | 443 (1921) | Pitney | none | Brandeis | 2d Cir. | reversed |
| Bracht v. San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway Company | 489 (1921) | McReynolds | none | none | Mo. Ct. App. | affirmed |
| United States v. Strang | 491 (1921) | McReynolds | none | none | S.D. Fla. | affirmed |
| Mangan v. United States | 494 (1921) | Clarke | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Director General of Railroads v. The Viscose Company | 498 (1921) | Clarke | none | none | 3d Cir. | certification |
| J.W. Goldsmith, Jr.-Grant Company v. United States | 505 (1921) | McKenna | none | none | N.D. Ga. | affirmed |
| Bullock v. Florida ex rel. Railroad Commission of Florida | 513 (1921) | Holmes | none | none | Fla. | affirmed |
| Ex parte Muir | 522 (1921) | VanDevanter | none | none | D.N.J. | mandamus denied |
| St. Louis and San Francisco Railway Company v. Public Service Commission of Missouri | 535 (1921) | McReynolds | none | none | Mo. | reversed |
| Pere Marquette Railway Company v. J.F. French and Company | 538 (1921) | Brandeis | none | none | Mich. | reversed |
| Louie v. United States | 548 (1921) | Brandeis | none | none | 9th Cir. | reversed |
| Panama Railroad Company v. Pigott | 552 (1921) | Holmes | none | none | 5th Cir. | affirmed |
| Central Union Trust Company v. Garvan | 554 (1921) | Holmes | none | none | 2d Cir. | affirmed |
| La Motte v. United States | 570 (1921) | VanDevanter | none | none | 8th Cir. | affirmed |
| The Journal and Tribune Company v. United States | 581 (1921) | Pitney | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Jackson v. Smith | 586 (1921) | Brandeis | none | none | D.C. Cir. | reversed |
| Geddes v. Anaconda Copper Mining Company | 590 (1921) | Clarke | none | none | 9th Cir. | reversed |