Lawson v. Suwannee Fruit & Steamship Co.
336 U.S. 198 · Decided February 14, 1949 · 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
Lawson v. Suwannee Fruit & Steamship Co. was decided on February 14, 1949 by a vote of 8–1. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Frank Murphy wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Liability, miscellaneous” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 336 U.S. 198 · 69 S. Ct. 503 · 93 L. Ed. 2d 611 · 1949 U.S. LEXIS 2931
- Docket number
- 56
- Decided
- February 14, 1949
- Argued
- December 7, 1948
- Court era
- Vinson Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–1
- Majority opinion
- Frank Murphy
- Opinion assigned by
- Fred M. Vinson
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Liability, miscellaneous
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | |
| Justice Frank Murphy | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Majority | |
| Justice Wiley B. Rutledge | Majority | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson | Majority |
Full case caption
Lawson, Deputy Commissioner, United States Employees' Compensation Commission, v. Suwannee Fruit & Steamship Co. et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1948-038, docket 1948-038-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Liability, miscellaneous”
- Black Diamond Steamship Corp. v. Robert Stewart & Sons, Ltd.
- Coray v. Southern Pacific Co.
- Urie v. Thompson
- Cosmopolitan Shipping Co. v. McAllisterAltered precedent
- Weade v. Dichmann
- O'Donnell v. Elgin
Cases on the same legal provision: Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act
- O'Leary v. Brown-Pacific-Maxon, Inc.
- Pillsbury v. United Engineering Co.
- Pennsylvania Railroad Co. v. O'Rourke
- Voris v. Eikel
- Avondale Marine Ways, Inc. v. Henderson
- Thompson v. Lawson
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Mandel Brothers, Inc. v. Wallace
- Ford Motor Co. v. United States
- Eckenrode v. Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
- Kordel v. United States
- United States v. Urbuteit
- Grand River Dam Authority v. Grand-Hydro
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