Hess v. United States
361 U.S. 314 · Decided January 18, 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
Hess v. United States was decided on January 18, 1960 by a vote of 6–3. The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Potter Stewart wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Election of remedies” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 361 U.S. 314 · 80 S. Ct. 341 · 4 L. Ed. 2d 305 · 1960 U.S. LEXIS 1883
- Docket number
- 5
- Decided
- January 18, 1960
- Argued
- October 15, 1959
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Vacated and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Potter Stewart
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Election of remedies
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Concurrence | Co-authored an opinion |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Dissent | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Concurrence | Co-authored an opinion |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Concurrence | Co-authored an opinion |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Concurrence | Co-authored an opinion |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Hess, Administrator, v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1959-023, docket 1959-023-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Election of remedies”
- Goett v. Union Carbide Corp.
- Schilling v. Rogers
- Pennsylvania Railroad Co. v. Day
- Union Pacific Railroad Co. v. Price
- United States v. 93.970 Acres of Land
- Patterson v. United States
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