Davis v. Virginian Railway Co.
361 U.S. 354 · Decided January 25, 1960 · 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
Davis v. Virginian Railway Co. was decided on January 25, 1960 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Tom C. Clark wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Sufficiency of evidence in injury or death compensation” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 361 U.S. 354 · 80 S. Ct. 387 · 4 L. Ed. 2d 366 · 1960 U.S. LEXIS 1716
- Docket number
- 53
- Decided
- January 25, 1960
- Argued
- December 10, 1959
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Tom C. Clark
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Federal Employers' Liability Act
- 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 | Jurisdictional dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority |
Full case caption
Davis v. Virginian Railway Co.
SCDB identifiers: case 1959-027, docket 1959-027-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Sufficiency of evidence in injury or death compensation”
- Inman v. Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Co.
- Sentilles v. Inter-Caribbean Shipping Corp.
- Ward v. Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Co.
- Harris v. Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
- Conner v. Butler
- Dick v. New York Life Insurance Co.
Cases on the same legal provision: Federal Employers' Liability Act
- Sinkler v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Co.
- Still v. Norfolk & Western Railway Co.
- Southern Pacific Co. v. Gileo
- Reed v. Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
- Dennis v. Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad Co.
- Gillespie v. United States Steel Corp.
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Harris v. Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
- Conner v. Butler
- United States v. Seaboard Air Line Railroad Co.
- Sentilles v. Inter-Caribbean Shipping Corp.
- West v. United States
- Braen v. Pfeifer Oil Transportation Co., Inc.
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