Reider v. Thompson, Trustee, Missouri Pacific Railroad Co. (339 U.S. 113)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided March 13, 1950 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 339 U.S. 113 · 70 S. Ct. 499
- Docket
- No. 403
- Argued
- February 7, 1950
- Decided
- March 13, 1950
- Term
- October Term 1949
- Vote
- 6–1
- Majority author
- Justice Minton
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Liberal
How the Justices voted
- Majority
- Chief Justice Vinson, Justice Minton (wrote), Justice Clark, Justice Burton, Justice Reed, Justice Black
- Dissenting
- Justice Frankfurter (wrote)
Opinion excerpt
Mr. Justice Minton delivered the opinion of the Court. The question in this case is whether a claim for relief under the so-called Carmack Amendment to the Interstate Commerce Act has been stated against respondent carrier. The District Court held that a claim within the Amendment had not been stated. The Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed by a divided court. 176 F. 2d 13. Because the case presents an issue of importance in the application of a federal statute governing liability of common carriers for damage to goods transported by them, we granted certiorari. 338 U. S. 890. The Carmack Amendment in pertinent part provides: “Any common carrier, railroad, or transportation company subject to the provisions of this chapter receiving property for transportation from a point in one State or Territory or the District of Columbia to a point in another State, Territory, District of Columbia, or from any point in the United States to a point in an adjacent foreign country shall issue a receipt or bill of lading therefor, and shall be liable to the lawful holder thereof for any loss, damage, or injury to such property caused by it or by any common carrier, railroad, or transportation company to which such property may be delivered or over whose line or lines such property may pass within the United States or within an adjacent foreign country when transported on a…
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