Arkansas v. Texas et al. (346 U.S. 368)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided November 16, 1953 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 346 U.S. 368 · 74 S. Ct. 109
- Docket
- No. ORIG
- Argued
- October 21, 1953
- Decided
- November 16, 1953
- Term
- October Term 1953
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority author
- Justice Douglas
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Disposition
- Stay, petition, or motion granted
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Liberal
How the Justices voted
- Majority
- Chief Justice Warren, Justice Black, Justice Douglas (wrote), Justice Burton, Justice Reed
- Dissenting
- Justice Clark, Justice Frankfurter, Justice Minton, Justice R. H. Jackson (wrote)
Opinion excerpt
Mr. Justice Douglas delivered the opinion of the Court. This is a motion by Arkansas to file a complaint against Texas and invoke our original jurisdiction granted by Art. Ill, § 2, of the Constitution. The complaint alleges that the University of Arkansas, acting through its Board of Trustees, and the William Buchanan Foundation, a corporation organized under the laws of Texas, entered into a contract whereby the Foundation agreed to contribute a sum of $500,000 to the construction of a one-hundred-bed pediatric floor in a new hospital in the Arkansas State Medical Center. The allegations are that, though the University of Arkansas and the Foundation are ready, willing, and able to perform, the State of Texas, acting through her Attorney General, has filed suit in the Texas courts to enjoin the Foundation from performing the contract on the ground that under Texas law the trust funds of the Foundation must be expended for the benefit of Texas residents. The complaint further alleges that the University of Arkansas is an official instrumentality of Arkansas, that in reliance on the agreement with the Foundation it let contracts for the construction of the hospital, proceeded with construction to the sixth floor, and is without funds to proceed further unless Texas is enjoined from interference with the contract. We issued a rule to show cause why leave to file the complaint…
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