Watson et Ux. v. Employers Liability Assurance Corporation, Ltd.
348 U.S. 66 · Decided December 6, 1954 · 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
Watson et Ux. v. Employers Liability Assurance Corporation, Ltd. was decided on December 6, 1954 unanimously (8–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Hugo L. Black 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
- 348 U.S. 66 · 75 S. Ct. 166 · 99 L. Ed. 2d 74 · 1954 U.S. LEXIS 2756
- Docket number
- 6
- Decided
- December 6, 1954
- Argued
- October 14, 1954
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 8–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Hugo L. Black
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- Election of remedies
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority |
Full case caption
Watson et Ux. v. Employers Liability Assurance Corporation, Ltd. et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1954-009, docket 1954-009-01.
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- Pope & Talbot, Inc. v. Hawn
- Avondale Marine Ways, Inc. v. Henderson
- Archawski v. Hanioti
- Southern Pacific Co. v. Gileo
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection)
- Williamson v. Lee Optical of Oklahoma, Inc.
- Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
- Williams v. Georgia
- Brown v. Board of Education of TopekaAltered precedentLaw held unconstitutional
- Hernandez v. Texas
- Salsburg v. Maryland
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- McAllister v. United States
- Moore v. Mead's Fine Bread Co.
- Cox v. Roth
- United States v. Shubert
- United States v. International Boxing Club of New York, Inc.
- United States v. Guy W. Capps, 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