Thompson v. United States
343 U.S. 549 · Decided June 2, 1952 · 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
Thompson v. United States was decided on June 2, 1952 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Railroad regulation” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 343 U.S. 549 · 72 S. Ct. 978 · 96 L. Ed. 2d 1134 · 1952 U.S. LEXIS 2656
- Docket number
- 513
- Decided
- June 2, 1952
- Argued
- April 23, 1952
- 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
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Fred M. Vinson
- Opinion assigned by
- Fred M. Vinson
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- Railroad regulation
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Interstate Commerce 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 | Majority | |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Majority | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Majority |
Full case caption
Thompson, Trustee, Missouri Pacific Railroad Co. v. United States et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1951-086, docket 1951-086-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Railroad regulation”
- United States v. Great Northern Railway Co.
- Swift & Company v. United States
- Secretary of Agriculture v. United States
- Railway Labor Executives' Association v. United States
- United States v. Jones
- Chicago v. Acme Fast Freight, Inc.
Cases on the same legal provision: Interstate Commerce Act
- King v. United States
- New York v. Nothnagle
- United States v. Champlin Refining Co.
- United States v. Texas & Pacific Motor Transport Co.
- Henderson v. United States
- United States v. United States Smelting Refining & Mining Co.
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- McMahon v. United States
- Lorain Journal Co. v. United States
- United States v. Fortier
- Desper v. Starved Rock Ferry Co.
- United States v. Kelly
- Pillsbury v. United Engineering Co.
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