O'Donnell v. Elgin
338 U.S. 384 · Decided December 12, 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
O'Donnell v. Elgin was decided on December 12, 1949 by a vote of 4–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Robert H. Jackson 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
- 338 U.S. 384 · 70 S. Ct. 200 · 94 L. Ed. 2d 187 · 1949 U.S. LEXIS 1596
- Docket number
- 56
- Decided
- December 12, 1949
- Argued
- October 21, 1949
- Court era
- Vinson Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 4–2
- Majority opinion
- Robert H. Jackson
- Opinion assigned by
- Fred M. Vinson
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Liability, miscellaneous
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- 42 U.S.C. § 2
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Dissent | |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority |
Did not participate: Felix Frankfurter, William O. Douglas, Sherman Minton.
Full case caption
O'Donnell, Administratrix, v. Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway Co.
SCDB identifiers: case 1949-020, docket 1949-020-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Liability, miscellaneous”
- Carter v. Atlanta & St. Andrews Bay Railway Co.
- Affolder v. New York
- Reider v. Thompson
- Cosmopolitan Shipping Co. v. McAllisterAltered precedent
- Weade v. Dichmann
- Urie v. Thompson
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- United States v. Spelar
- Treichler v. WisconsinLaw held unconstitutional
- Faulkner v. Gibbs
- Reilly v. Pinkus
- United States v. Capital Transit Company
- Brown v. Western Railway of Alabama
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