United States v. United States Gypsum Co. et al. (340 U.S. 76)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided November 27, 1950 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 340 U.S. 76 · 71 S. Ct. 160
- Docket
- No. 30
- Argued
- October 19, 1950
- Decided
- November 27, 1950
- Term
- October Term 1950
- Vote
- 6–1
- Majority author
- Justice Reed
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Conservative
How the Justices voted
- Majority
- Chief Justice Vinson, Justice Minton, Justice Burton, Justice Douglas, Justice Frankfurter, Justice Reed (wrote)
- Dissenting
- Justice Black (wrote)
Opinion excerpt
Mr. Justice Reed delivered the opinion of the Court. This proceeding was filed in 1940 in the District Court of the United States for the District of Columbia by the United States under the authority of the Attorney General. 15 U. S. C. § 4. The complaint charged, ¶[ 44, a long-continued conspiracy by defendants in restraint of trade in gypsum products among the several states and in the District of Columbia, and a similar monopoly, all in violation of §§ 1, 2 and 3 of the Sherman Antitrust Act, 26 Stat. 209, as amended, 15 U. S. C. §§ 1, 2, 3. The defendants, appellees here, were United States Gypsum Co., patentee, and various other gypsum board manufacturers, its licensees, and certain of their officers. It was alleged that the combination carried out its unlawful purposes as indicated in the excerpt from the complaint quoted below. Civil relief, through prohibitory and mandatory orders, was prayed in various appropriate forms. After the United States concluded its evidence in chief at the trial, a three-judge District Court, 15 U. S. C. § 28, granted appellees’ motion to dismiss under Rule 41 (b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on the ground that no right to relief had been shown. On direct appeal, 15 U. S. C. § 29, we reversed the judgment of dismissal, March 8, 1948, United States v. United States Gypsum Co., 333 U. S. 364, and remanded the case to the District…
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