Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Lester
366 U.S. 299 · Decided May 22, 1961 · Supreme Court of the United States
Record summary. This page is generated from the Supreme Court Database’s coded data about the case. It describes who decided what, not the Court’s reasoning. Read the opinion itself before relying on it. Not legal advice.
At a glance
Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Lester was decided on May 22, 1961 unanimously (9–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Tom C. Clark wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Federal taxation of gifts and business expenses” in the Federal Taxation area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 366 U.S. 299 · 81 S. Ct. 1343 · 6 L. Ed. 2d 306 · 1961 U.S. LEXIS 2113
- Docket number
- 376
- Decided
- May 22, 1961
- Argued
- April 25, 1961
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Tom C. Clark
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Federal taxation of gifts and business expenses
- Issue area
- Federal Taxation
- Legal provision
- Internal Revenue Code
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Majority | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority |
Full case caption
Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Lester
SCDB identifiers: case 1960-095, docket 1960-095-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Federal taxation of gifts and business expenses”
- Dayton Rubber Co. v. Cordovan Associates, Inc.
- Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Duberstein et Ux.
- United States v. Kaiser
- Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Bilder
- United States v. Davis
- Rudolph et Ux. v. United States
Cases on the same legal provision: Internal Revenue Code
- United States v. Consolidated Edison Co. of New York, Inc.
- James v. United StatesAltered precedent
- Jarecki v. G. D. Searle & Co.
- American Automobile Association v. United States
- Bulova Watch Co., Inc. v. United States
- Meyer v. United States
Same Term, same area (Federal Taxation)
- Dayton Rubber Co. v. Cordovan Associates, Inc.
- United States v. John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co.
- United States v. Hougham
- Knetsch et Ux. v. United States
- Meyer v. United States
- Small Business Administration v. McClellan
Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error